Bringing Up Baby
by Isabelle
Summary: COMPLETE. Post 2.16. C&B arrive at the Van der Bass home to find a small child left for the Bass family. This follows the first 48 hrs adjusting to having a small child to care for, with C & B realizing they’re anything but over one another.
1. Chapter 1

**Title: Bringing Up Baby **

Author: Isabelle

Rating: PG

Disclaimer: I do not own Gossip Girl and Chuck Bass is not locked in my closet. But Blair might be ;)

Spoilers: Post 2.16. After avoiding one another, they arrive at the Van der Bass home to find a small child left for the Bass family. This follows the first 48 hrs adjusting to having a small child to care for, with C & B realizing they're anything but over one another.

A/N – This will be a much lighter piece, full of fluff and fun moments as the hours tick by, and Chuck & Blair realize what it takes to be a family. A special thank you to Tati, my always faithful beta *kiss*

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**(Chapter 1)**

_Friday, 7pm_

Blair Waldorf lived entirely through plans.

These plans were segregated by steps.

Step 1 – Call Serena.

Step 2 – If Serena does not answer, invade her private space, kick Brooklyn out, and demand girl time.

She was, after all, semi-grieving. It was only fair that she would require BFF time. When Serena broke up with Dan for maybe the fourth time (She couldn't remember, they'd broken up so many times), she had been there, listening and grimacing at the mundane and monotonous blabbering. It was only fair that Serena do the same for her.

So when Serena still didn't pick up her phone after the seventh ring, Blair decided to take matters into her own hands. She dressed in her new Chanel dress and pretty matching flats and trotted her sad self down to the Van der Woodsen place.

It was a safe zone for at least the next couple of days, since Chuck had not yet moved in to invade their sanctuary. No Chuck meant a happy Blair.

Dexter nodded to her as she trotted into the lobby and threw him a wave, a wave to a well-behaved manservant. The elevator was closing, so she jumped forward.

"Hold the elevator!" She cried and slipped in, sliding her thin body between the doors with a satisfied smirk. There was nothing Blair Waldorf didn't get. Except for, you know… What she didn't get, which was quickly dismissed as unnecessary.

And what she needed was air. Maybe vodka. Vodka would be good. Seeing as her need to enter the damn elevator had stuck her with none other than the object of her non-affection. Chuck Bass.

Dressed in casual slacks, an opened yellow shirt, and a questioning look in his handsome eyes. She opened her mouth to speak and then decided against it.

Why did it have to be an elevator? Why couldn't it be a ferry, a public bus, or a horse-drawn carriage? No. It had to be an elevator. Their first interaction _since_ the elevator was in an elevator.

Fate hated her.

Fate was out to destroy her.

Her life sucked.

She couldn't breathe.

Damn, he smelled good.

She was suffocating. She pressed her hand to her chest. She felt dizzy, but she had to keep her composure. She was _over_ him. SO over him. He and his colored shirt had no affect whatsoever on her. None. Nada. Zippo.

"Evening, Waldorf," he drawled, looking ahead, not looking at her. Casually leaning against the wall with a hat in his hand.

Why was he not dressed to go out? It was Friday night. For that matter, why wasn't she dressed to go out? Dammit! She should've worn her vintage Lagerfeld dress. She should've. But she hadn't. Because she had not counted on Chuck being at the apartment yet. He was supposed to move back in next week. Not this week. Her plan had been drastically changed. Drastically altered, and Blair Waldorf didn't deal well with changes in the plan.

Her nostrils flared. She couldn't be rude. She needed to say something equally nonchalant.

She took a sharp breath. "Bass."

Perfect. Last name basis. Of course, they were always on last-name basis. When friends, when lovers, when 'friends', always last names. Dammit. She was going to have to talk to Lily about the horrible air conditioning problem in this elevator. It was obvious that there wasn't enough circulation.

She glanced at the floor.

They were on 15.

She sighed.

Twenty more floors to go. She couldn't take it.

Why did Bart Bass have to chose the top of the damn world? Pissed her off! She wasn't supposed to be pissed off at a dead man, but he seemed to be mocking them now from the grave.

Her brows furrowed and she could almost see the man smirking.

"Relax. I promise to pretend we don't know each other," he said quietly, and her heart clenched because they were so utterly far from where they had been just a few weeks before. She could hardly stand it. It was slowly eating her alive. It was finally having a connection with someone, and then having it yanked away by her own self-preservation instincts.

She wished things were different. She wished they could just be two high school teenagers in love with one another, and just _act_ like it. Act all in love, like Serena and Dan could. Hold hands without all of these messy issues rearing their ugly heads all over the place.

But they were not like that. It was not them.

He was right. It was only a matter of time before one of the messed it all up, and they would end up like this. Stuck in a place neither wanted to be, with oceans between them and a hundred words of anger and apology unspoken in the mists of thick air.

That's what they were. Chuck and Blair. Blair and Chuck. Never starting and always unending.

When the elevator finally rang, she let out the breath she had been holding and nearly stumbled out of the confined box. His presence was right behind her, making her skin prickle. She walked forward, intent on finding Serena and either taking them out of the apartment or locking themselves in her room.

Of course, the plan was instantly foiled by the oddest thing she had ever seen in the Van der Bass home.

Chuck spotted it, too. Without noticing, he stood next to her as they both looked on, transfixed on the object on the floor. They studied it, as if the thing was alive and would jump out and attack them.

"What is it?" She asked softly, confused as hell.

His brows were furrowed. He walked forward, his head tilting as he studied the small red box with a metal winder on the side.

She wanted to say 'be careful,' but it was no longer her place. He'd made sure she knew her place. The box could explode for all she cared.

And of course that's exactly what the box did when he touched it with the tip of his Italian leather caramel shoe. Blair screamed, Chuck cursed loudly and they both jumped (of course, Blair was merely grasping his arm to steady herself because she was sure they were both dying).

They didn't die. In fact, she didn't know if she should laugh or kick the damn box.

From out of the box, a smiling and very freaky clown was protruding. It was laughing.

"HAHAHAHAHA," it said as it bounced, staring at them.

Chuck looked downright pissed.

"Oh, my God, that is horrible!" Blair exclaimed, her heart at her throat (she quickly dropped Chuck's arm, as it was obvious he wasn't going to protect her from the evil 6 inch clown).

Chuck touched it with his foot, and the box with the clown fell back and continued laughing.

"Make it stop!" Blair demanded, still freaked out by such a thing left in the foyer. "Who would leave that there? Where's Lily?"

"She's in Spain," Chuck explained, distracted and reaching for the box. She watched him as he attempted to put the clown back in the box. Horrible thing.

But then that's when they both paused. Chuck was squatting down with the box in his hands and Blair froze, eyes wide.

"What was that?" Chuck whispered.

Blair's mouth felt dry. She should've stayed home. She swore if they found another box, she would get back in the elevator and not visit until their home was properly exorcized.

They heard it again. An… _odd_ sound. Like a giggle and a cry.

"Ok, I'm leaving," she declared, turning on her heels. She didn't need girl bonding time that badly. But that was when the object of horror came into view. She gasped, and Chuck stood up sharply, clown forgotten on the floor.

There, peaking from behind their Italian couch was a child. A small child. A knee-high type of child. Blair stepped back, and so did Chuck.

"Are we in the right apartment?" Blair asked almost breathlessly.

The little boy (at least she thought it was a boy) with wide hazel eyes studied them and then grew shy and hid his face against the couch. His pacifier had been dropped on the carpet and drool painted the couch.

Both Blair and Chuck looked on with horror-stricken faces.

"That's going to stain," she assured him.

"Whose is it? Why is it here?" Chuck demanded, nearly angry.

"I don't know!" She snapped. "Where's its mother?"

They looked around and the apartment was eerily quiet.

"Hello!" He yelled into the room. "Bonnie! Annette!"

Nothing.

Blair was still staring at the child, wide-eyed. He peeked out and looked right back at them. His light brown hair falling on his forehead.

"Gerard!" Chuck continued bellowing for the help.

"Chuck…" Blair tucked at this arm as the baby walked slowly towards them. Chuck spotted the movement, and they both scrambled out of the way, tripping over the table in an attempt to avoid the child's wet hands.

The child babbled of things that made no sense, and Blair hid behind Chuck when the baby spotted their forms. It soon became bored with them and waddled to the couch, pulling itself up slowly and staring at them from the couch.

"I think it's trying to communicate with us," Blair said.

Chuck threw her a look. "It's not an alien, Blair. It's a child. You know, a very tiny human being."

"Well, I've never been around children!" She snapped.

"Oh, and I have?" Chuck retorted.

"It's fine. It's ok. It's like that one time Nate's little cousin visited us in the Hamptons in 9th grade, remember?" She suggested.

"Willy was ten, Blair. This one is tinier," Chuck reminded her.

"I know it's tinier!" She spat out. "We just have to treat it the same."

"We locked Willy in a closet," he smirked.

She blinked innocently at him.

He rolled his eyes. "Let's just find its mother, ok?"

"Ball!" The baby shouted, and Chuck and Blair jumped back.

"It can talk," she exclaimed.

Chuck gulped. "Where is your mother?"

The baby stared back at them, and then let out a watery laugh. Blair looked around and spotted a blue bag with yellow polka dots.

"Look!" She cried and went to it, carefully eyeing the child to make sure it made no sudden movements. She picked up the bag, which had some baby bottles in it, what looked like diapers and… An envelope!

Chuck went to stand by her as she dropped the bag on the floor and opened the envelope. It was plain college-ruled paper, torn roughly from a notebook. The writing was choppy and anything but refined.

"Dear Bass family," Blair began. "I can't take care of my baby. Please look after him, and please don't call the cops," she trailed off and stared at Chuck. Chuck was gaping at the note. He yanked it from her as he scanned it.

"… The baby's name is Richard, but he likes Richie. Please make sure he knows I loved him. Thank you, and sorry! Kay," Chuck finished reading, a stunned tone in his voice. He looked at Blair and then they simultaneously looked at Richie. "Kay was our maid…"

Richie rubbed his eye as he tugged a sock off.

"Oh, my God…" Blair whispered. "… I didn't think these types of things happened anymore…"

"I'm calling Lily," Chuck announced.

_Friday, 8pm_

Blair stood by him, wriggling her hands as he waited for Lily to pick up. They would glance at Richie every once in a while. The little boy had slid off the couch, grabbed the blue bag, and was now dragging it all over the living room, making the contents spill out of it, leaving a small trail of diapers, bottles, and wet things.

"He's making a mess," Blair told Chuck, as if he couldn't see it himself. She had never seen the house in such a state. This child had been there for an hour and it was already a disaster. The baby began walking towards them, babbling more nonsense. They both simultaneously moved back, shielding themselves against a couch.

And that was when it happened. He let go of the bag and scrunched up his face and started bawling.

"Oh, no," Blair cried. "Is she answering?"

"No!" Chuck snapped, grimacing at the noise the child was making. "It goes to motherfucking voicemail!"

"Don't curse!" Blair chided.

The baby wailed louder, hiccupping and making his little chest rise and fall rapidly.

"Make it stop!" Chuck cried.

"I don't know how!" Blair countered.

"Aren't you supposed to know how to handle these things?" He asked.

"Why, because I'm a woman?" Her hands were on her hips, but they both froze when the little boy walked to them and raised his arms at them, still crying.

"It's trying to communicate," Chuck said doubtfully.

"Oh, really?" She asked mockingly.

"It wants you to pick it up." He shoved the child at her.

"Oh, no! He's not mine. He's _yours_. He was left to the Bass family, and last I heard, you're the only one left," she spat angrily.

"Well, I'm not picking him up. I don't like children," he said easily.

The baby cried louder, and Blair covered her ears.

"Neither do I!" She cried, louder than the wailing.

But the baby made the decision for them as he latched on to Blair's leg and mumbled something as he tried to get her to pick him up.

"It's touching me! Oh, my God, this is Chanel!" Drool and tears were now staining her silk skirt. Chuck grimaced and then jumped up when his phone rang.

"It's Lily!" He cried delightedly and quickly picked up the call.

Blair attempted to back away, pulling the little fingers off her skirt. He grasped on to her hands, making her blanch.

"Lily! Thank goodness you called," Chuck breathed into the phone. The child's cries became louder.

"Charles, what on earth is that noise?" Lily asked.

"It's a child – a baby. It's here in the suite. It was left here, and now it's crying," he explained easily, helping Blair untangle herself from the baby.

"Who left it? What are you talking about?"

"The maid, Kay. The one who flirted with Eric last month, remember?" He replied, pulling Blair with him as they evaded the child and hid behind a couch. "She left her kid. It's tiny, and it's crying. She left a note – ow! Blair!" She had stepped on his foot in her attempt to prevent the baby from reaching her once more.

"Blair's there?"

"Yes! Blair's here. It was left to us, and I – watch it!" He barely escaped the baby's wet paws as they made their way to his slacks. "Lily – you need to come home now. I can't handle this mess –"

"I'm sorry, Charles, but the meetings go on until Sunday afternoon," she explained.

"What exactly am I supposed to do?" He snapped angrily as Blair climbed over a sofa. "It won't shut up, and it wants to touch us."

He could hear Lily laughing in the other end.

"Lily… This is not funny," he ground out. "We don't know anything about kids and we're liable to kill it."

"Just call a nanny in the morning. I think you can manage that. And for tonight… Well, for tonight just… If he cries, it's one of three things. He's hungry. He's tired. Or he's got… A wet diaper. How old is he?"

Chuck was too busy disbelieving the situation to counter. "It's about as tall as my knee… maybe taller."

Lily chuckled.

"My purse, Chuck! My purse!" Blair cried as a large snot bubble from the baby's nose fell on it. They both groaned.

"It's leaking all over the place," Chuck said darkly. "From all places."

Lily laughed. "He's probably a little over a year. He's still a baby. Now, clean him up. Hold him and check his diaper."

"What? Where are the maids?" Chuck asked.

"Well, since I'm in Spain, and Eric is with my mother, and you were not supposed to be moving in until next week, Serena said she didn't need them, so I gave them the weekend off," she explained. "But don't worry. Hilda will be in the morning. Call the nanny, you'll be fine. I'll sort through this when I get back."

And with that she hung up.

"Is she coming? When? When is she coming?" Blair demanded, and he glanced at her, then at the baby, who continued sobbing. He was getting a headache.

"She's not," he sighed. "And there's no nanny service until the morning."

"Where are the maids?" She asked in horror.

"They're off," he said darkly, rubbing his temples.

"What are you supposed to do?" She wondered, staring at him doubtfully.

"Me? You're helping me out. It likes you." He pointed at the baby who had, without her notice, latched onto her skirt. Blair yelped and yanked the fabric from its fingers, making it sob louder.

"Mama!" It yelled.

Blair and Chuck gasped and stared at it. Blair slowly turned to glare at Chuck.

"Charles Bartholomew Bass, you make this child stop wanting me, or I swear to God, I will make your life a living hell!" She cried.

Chuck glared at her, and she glared back.

And that was when he spotted it. A little brown… pebble on the carpet. On the pristine ivory carpet.

He scrunched up his face and walked to it, ignoring her glowing looks. There were… a lot of pebbles. A little trail of them.

"Oh, fuck no…" he whispered with realization.

The baby wailed, and Blair blanched.

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Tbc…


	2. Chapter 2

**Title: Bringing Up Baby **

Author: Isabelle

Rating: PG

Disclaimer: I do not own Gossip Girl and Chuck Bass is not locked in my closet. But Blair might be ;)

Spoilers: Post 2.16. After avoiding one another, they arrive at the Van der Bass home to find a small child left for the Bass family. This follows the first 48 hrs of adjusting to having a small child to care for, leading to the realization that they're anything but over one another.

A/N – A special thank you to Tati, my always faithful beta *kiss*

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**(Chapter 2)**

_Friday, 9pmf_

"It's shit! There's shit on the fucking floor!" Chuck cried.

Blair bypassed the baby's waiting hands and went to Chuck, squatting and scrunching her nose.

"Oh, God… That smell…" she whispered. The baby followed and stood before them, staring down at his own poop as he softly hiccupped, his little chest rising.

"_Caca_…" he said.

"Caca? What the hell?" Chuck demanded, his eyes narrowed. "You couldn't hold it?"

"Caca…" the boy explained again, then bent down, much to their horror, picked up a pebble between his little fingers and aimed for his mouth.

Blair screamed, and Chuck reacted, grabbing his little hand and making him drop the pebble back on the carpet. The pebble was now a mushy mess, and his little fingers were brownish green.

The baby, startled, let out another loud wail and latched onto Chuck. Chuck was stock still as the little arms wrapped around him. The dirty little hand grabbed on to his sleeve and spread the shit all over Chuck's new ivory dinner jacket. Chuck let out a loud groan. Blair watched in horror as the scene developed.

"Chuck, don't touch it!" Blair admonished.

"I didn't touch it!" Chuck said, poking his head over the baby's brown hair. "It latched on to me."

"We need to get help. We're going to end up killing it! We don't know what to do with a baby!" Blair snapped.

"Look, Lily said…" And the little boy buried his face in Chuck's neck, making him pause in confusion. "… That they cry for one of three things. He's hungry, he's tired… Or he's got a wet diaper."

Blair blanched and stared at the boy's butt.

"Oh, no. Good luck, Bass." She stood up and grabbed her new Balenciaga purse with a grimace, since it was now stained with boogers, and headed to the elevator.

"Blair!" Chuck called out behind her. She stopped against her better judgment and slowly turned to face him. He was standing in the middle of the living room, his jacket stained, his hair disheveled, and a crying baby in his arms. Her heart softened slightly, because this is what she had envisioned in her nights of fantasy. Moments like this. Of course, those moments would be in the distant future, but through this odd turn of fate it was happening now. She took a slowly breath and finally nodded.

"Let's wash his hand and take off that jacket…" she said softly.

He nodded, walking to the bathroom with her following close behind and avoiding all the shit on the floor. She had counted at least seven pebbles. Disgusting.

She stood before him and carefully lifted the baby under the arms, holding it away from her body as it continued to whimper and cry. His little brown hand was eyed carefully as Chuck took off his jacket and threw it in the trash bin, making sure the lid was shut. Blair handed him back the child and turned on the faucet, making the baby momentarily stop crying to eye what she was doing.

Blair took out the liquid soap as Chuck grabbed his little wrist and held it under the warm water. She poured a few pumps of the clear soap onto the small hand. The child wiggled its fingers and laughed a bit, making Blair and Chuck stop and stare at the baby.

"He likes it," Chuck commented.

Blair pumped some more soap, and the baby laughed again, making her grin.

Chuck stopped and stared at her, watching her smile at the baby. She caught his gaze, but promptly looked away and let the smile drop from her face. She turned to the faucet and rinsed the small hand, careful not to touch the shit. Once his little hand was clean, they both relaxed and turned to the child.

The baby rubbed his eyes and started crying again.

"We've got to change the diaper," Chuck declared. "There's more of it in there…"

Blair scrunched her nose and stared at the baby. "Go online and see how we do this."

She didn't know how she ended up holding the crying child; her ear drum was shot from one side as she looked over Chuck's shoulder, watching a video of an elderly woman changing a baby diaper.

"We can do this. It's not that bad," he commented, and she looked at him doubtfully because she honestly didn't want to open that diaper. Armageddon lay ahead.

"Let's lay him on the bed." Blair started for his bed, and he quickly jumped up.

"I don't think so, Waldorf – Serena's bed." He looked at her innocently.

Blair opened her mouth to protest.

"It's seen less _questionable_ activities," he smirked. She threw him a glare.

"May I remind you that I'm doing you a favor?" She snapped, eyes narrowed. He smirked at her.

"Same mattress from room 1812. If I'm not mistaken, even you took it for a ride."

And she slapped his chest as he chuckled at her flushed reaction, then pressed her hand over the baby's ear.

"Can you not talk about our sex life in front of him?" She cried.

"So we have a sex life?" He countered, enjoying the way her cheeks flushed prettily.

"Past. Past s.e.x. life." She motioned to the baby and sent him a glare.

Chuck looked at the baby, who was still miserable and rolled his eyes. "C'mon – to Serena's room." He reached out and took her elbow, guiding her down the hallway.

She felt her skin prickle where he touched her and tried not to let it affect her as they walked to Serena's room. Blair gently laid the child down, despite his little hands holding on to her shoulders and whimpering. The child stared up at them as they eyed it carefully.

"We need a new diaper," she announced, and Chuck nodded, walking out and bringing back the messy blue bag into the room. He took a white diaper out with little trains on it and handed it to Blair, who looked at it doubtfully.

"Ok," she started and placed her hand on the baby's chest when he began to roll over. "Hold him down!"

Chuck quickly got on the bed and placed his hands on the baby's shoulders, holding him down. The baby screeched and started to cough.

"No, Mama, no!" It cried.

Blair frowned as she pulled the little stickers on the side of the diaper like the video showed. When they came off she smiled triumphantly.

"You're quite domesticated, B," Chuck observed, smirking at her. But his smirk quickly faded when the little boy's kicks opened the diaper and out came the smell. Blair yelped, Chuck gasped and she quickly closed the diaper.

"Oh, my God, he's dying!" Blair cried. "No wonder he's crying!"

Chuck was still gasping. From his angle, he had gotten the full-frontal attack of the smell.

"Get a bag, get a bag!" Blair yelled at him, as she held the baby down, trying to prevent the diaper from opening back again. Chuck was glad to roll off the bed and came back with a box of white kitchen bags. He pulled and three came out, making a mess as she rolled her eyes.

"We just need two," she said.

It was a quick procedure. It had to be perfectly coordinated effort. Chuck held the bag open, Blair swiftly pulled the diaper out, and shoved into the bag. Chuck closed the bag, tying it three times to ensure the smell would stay in. And they did a little cheer.

That is, until they realized the baby was covered in shit.

Without the diaper's protection, the child had rolled over and his butt was painting Serena's sheets brown.

"Serena's going to love this," Chuck lamented as Blair gave a tiny yelp in horror.

Chuck grabbed the baby, who was no longer crying, and lifted him up.

"Oh, my God – it's all over the place!" Blair was horrified. Chuck took the baby to the bathroom, and Blair grabbed the sheets, yanking them and stuffing them in one of the bags. Serena was going to *kill* them.

She quickly ran to the bathroom to find Chuck carefully placing the baby in the sink. He looked up at her, and she had to smile.

"Desperate times call for desperate measures," he quoted.

She shook her head and grabbed the soap, pouring it over the baby. He laughed happily, splashing and making a mess out of the sink and out of them.

"No! Stop. This is silk!" She cried and heard Chuck laugh, something she hadn't heard him do… in such a long time. Maybe not since that week they spent together before the disaster that was summer. She nearly reeled back from the gut-stabbing pain at the memory of how she felt when she realized he wasn't coming. Chuck noticed the change in her body. From lively and carefree to rigid, her lips hardened and she avoided his eyes as she grabbed a towel and they wrapped the baby in it.

The baby began babbling once more as she turned sharply and went into the room. He swallowed and walked out with the child in his arms.

Chuck Bass thought he understood what she was doing. She was protecting herself. From love. From pain. From him. And he didn't know how to fix it. Fix them.

It was no longer the summer. He couldn't entice her with reminders of their sex life because, the truth was, they hadn't had sex in such a long time he could hardly remember what it had been like. But he never really forgot. You don't forget when you make love.

"Put him down again," he suggested, and she did. He handed her the diaper, and the baby stared at them questioningly, kicking his foot.

"Ok, so in the video she grabs his legs," Blair started and attempted to grab the feet, but Richie kept moving and laughing, thinking she was playing a game. "I can't – help me!"

Chuck grabbed the feet and lifted the child up slightly, and Blair studied the diaper and shook her head. "This is not going to work. Hold him up, Bass."

Chuck rolled his eyes. "Yes, it'll work. Do it like the video. You have to slide it under him."

"I don't think that will work. Something is wrong with this diaper. Look!" She showed him. He sighed, letting go of Richie and grabbing the diaper. "Grab his legs," he commanded, and she glared at him as she grabbed the happy baby's legs.

Chuck stood next to her, their shoulders touching as he attempted to slide the diaper under the child. They were so very close to one another; closer than they've been in weeks. He turned his head to look at her and was surprised to find her looking at him, their faces inches away.

"Got it?" She whispered.

Before he could answer, before he could breathe her in, Richie apparently couldn't control himself and a squirt of yellow liquid arched up in the air. They both jumped back, gasping.

The liquid landed on Serena's bare mattress.

Back to square one.

_Friday, 10pm_

"Are you sure it's supposed to look like that?" Blair asked Chuck in confusion. After rinsing the child once more, he was now sitting in only his diaper in the middle of the living room, his pacifier (which Blair had rinsed) in his mouth, and a teddy in his hands. He was babbling once more. The diaper was extremely loose on his waist, since the last one had nearly cut his circulation (for the record, that one had been Blair's attempt. Chuck had to explain that the male parts needed air).

Chuck was annoyed with life after being placed on poop-pick up duty. It was his carpet, after all.

"It's fine. He shouldn't have any more liquid in him, I think. Let's just not feed him for a while. Until it starts crying," Chuck suggested. She agreed.

Blair sighed, closing her phone. "Dorota can't come, but she'll stop by in the morning. Eleanor is having a soiree this week, and she's on lock down," Blair rolled her eyes.

Chuck sighed, sitting down and watching the little boy, who was rubbing his eyes at the moment.

"I think he needs toys…" Blair suggested. "He's only got five. I remember having much more than that. He can't be happy."

"We're not keeping him," Chuck reminded her.

"He also needs clothes. We can't just leave him in his diapers," she continued.

"Once I get nannies in here, he'll be fine," Chuck countered.

"We also have to be very careful with the nannies," she explained, pacing. Richie stopped with the teddy and waddled to them. "I mean, there's some real psychos out there, and they pass themselves off as adorable British nannies."

"Be aware of the cute but psycho British nannies?" He smirked at her. "Who comes up with that shit?"

Richie stood by Blair, rubbing his eyes furiously.

"At least some toys for tonight," she suggested. "He looks bored. He keeps rubbing his eyes."

"Babies rub their eyes all the time," Chuck said as he walked to the service phone.

Blair placed her hands on her hips. "Oh, like you know. What if he has pink eye?"

They both stopped and stared at the baby, who had spotted a lovely vase that Lily had brought in from Germany. It was a rare piece and perfect height to be knocked over by the child. He broke out into a run for it.

"Grab him!" Chuck cried. Blair dashed forward and caught him an inch before his hands reached the vase. The child, upset at being denied the toy, let out a high-pitched screech, sank on the floor, and screamed. Blair stepped back, stunned at the outburst.

"What did you do?" Chuck demanded, not happy about the return of the crying.

"Nothing! I grabbed him before he knocked down the $50,000 vase!" She snapped. Chuck grabbed the vase and placed it on top of the fireplace, out of harm's way. He spotted an ancient Chinese doll and decided to protect that item also.

Richie rolled on his back and continued sobbing.

"You see! I told you it needed toys!" Blair admonished. She bent down and picked up the baby, now slightly more comfortable with it in her arms. Richie quickly snuggled against her, resting his head on her shoulder. Chuck turned around and spotted her rocking the baby back and forth. He stared at her openly because she looked so at ease, her hand on the baby's back as she attempted to calm it down. She didn't catch him staring at her this time, but he made himself stop anyway. She was too perfect in moments like this. A man could lose his cool just looking at her.

He walked to the phone and barked orders to the concierge service, demanding toys be delivered. When he was told they would get there in the morning, it took more threatening to get them to agree on bringing some that same hour.

They were able to calm Richie when Blair sat on the couch with the baby and Chuck brought the dreaded pop-up box in. The baby stopped crying and stared at the box in wonder.

"Boo!" He said, his little finger pointing at it.

"Box of doom, Chuck. It's going to scare him, and he's going to start crying again. This time you're calming him down," Blair said.

"It's not going to scare him, Waldorf – it's the kid's toy. He knows it. See how he looks at it. He likes the pop-up monster."

Blair grimaced as Chuck wound the handle on the side, and Richie stared at it with wide eyes. She closed her eyes against the inevitable pop-up. Chuck squinted, not looking forward to the pop-up surprise. When it happened, life chose that moment for the elevator to ding. So the clown jumped, the baby screamed, the elevator dinged, Chuck jumped, and it was chaos. The child, obviously not enamored with the toy, let out a wail so loud that it scared them. He dropped his pacifier and clung onto Blair.

"I told you!" Blair yelled at Chuck, glaring at him as she rocked the baby again. Her dress was officially ruined. It used to be green silk. Now she looked like a spotted leopard.

Chuck stared at the baby, who was not happy, and tossed the box. The box-monster was officially banned. He turned to the elevator and saw two men with bags from Fao Schwartz in their hands. Chuck signed and had them place the bags down in the living room, then dismissed them.

Chuck and Blair went through the bags of toys and showed them to the baby, who refused to enjoy them; he kept crying and sobbing on Blair. Blair was ready to lock Chuck in a room with the pop-up monster at the rate they were going. By the time they had opened all the toys, the living room was truly a mess. Toys were all over the place, packaging littered every corner, and Richie wanted nothing.

"He hates it all," Blair groaned at Chuck.

"Remember what Lily said. If they cry, they want one of the three things." Chuck stood from his position on the floor and nearly killed himself tripping over a toy.

"Let it be sleep," Blair moaned, beginning to feel exhausted herself. That's when Richie let out a wide yawn.

"It's sleep," Chuck said, almost excitedly.

"Perfect. Let's get him to sleep so we can think." Blair stood and walked with Richie to Chuck's room.

"Excuse me, where do you think you're going?" He demanded.

"I can't place him on Serena's bed. It's wet!" Blair said over her shoulder.

"Oh, so he can wet mine?" Chuck called after her.

"Are you coming, Bass?" She stopped and turned to ask him. "Or are you afraid of being in a bed with me?"

That thought went straight to his crotch, and he watched her smirk and sway into his room. Richie's face peeked at him from over her shoulder, eyes wide and watery as he sucked on his pacifier.

Chuck sighed, running his hands over his disheveled hair, and started after her. This was not what he expected his Friday night to look like. But for the most part… He wasn't going to complain.

-------

Tbc…


	3. Chapter 3

**Title: Bringing Up Baby **

Author: Isabelle

Rating: PG

Disclaimer: I do not own Gossip Girl and Chuck Bass is not locked in my closet. But Blair might be ;)

Spoilers: Post 2.16. After avoiding one another, Chuck and Blair arrive at the Van der Bass home to find a small child left for the Bass family. This follows the first 48 hrs adjusting to having a small child to care for and realizing they're anything but over one another.

A/N – This will be a much lighter piece, full of fluff and fun moments as the hours tick by and Chuck & Blair realize what it takes to be a family. A special thank you to Tati, my always faithful beta *kiss*

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**(Chapter 3)**

_Friday, 11pm_

Chuck entered the room to see Blair placing the baby down on his feet on top of his freshly made bed. He had a feeling that this was going to end badly. Children had never seen his bed; his bed had never seen children. Richie stared at Blair, still sucking on his pacifier and sniffling.

"Ok. Here you go. Bed time," she sing-songed and motioned to the pillows. Chuck stared at the child.

"Mimi…" he whined behind his muffled pacifier.

Chuck intervened, seeing as this was going to take all night. He stood next to Blair, picked up the baby slightly, and lay him down. Blair stared at him, and he looked back at her and shrugged.

"I figured it shouldn't be given options," he explained.

This was not a popular thing with Richie, who sat up and scrunched up his face in order to cry.

"Oh, God," Blair groaned.

Chuck sighed tiredly. He was becoming exhausted.

"No!" Richie cried and held his hands up to Chuck, asking to be picked up. Dejectedly, Chuck lifted him up, and Richie latched on to him, placing his head on his chest and staring at Blair.

"We're going to have to lay with him, wait for him to be asleep, and then sneak out," Blair informed him, and Chuck had to admit that it was a pretty good one.

"Fine, go to the other side," he relented and kneeled on the bed with the child still in his arms. Richie seemed to like this much better, letting go of Chuck and rolling on the bed, babbling nonsense. Blair took off her shoes and carefully lay back on Chuck's bed. The child loved this and crawled to her, calling her Mama once more and making her roll her eyes. It also made her smile, but she hid it well.

She turned her body into Chuck with the baby between them, and Richie lay on his back, snuggling into the pillow.

"Lalalala," he began babbling.

"Shouldn't we sing it a song or read it a story or something?" Chuck looked at Richie, who was still wide-eyed awake but clearly tired.

Blair peeked at him over the child. "Why don't you do the singing?" She suggested, and he could clearly see the amusement in her eyes.

"I'm not a singer," he countered. "Why don't you do it?"

"I most definitely can't sing," she glared at him.

He smirked because he couldn't help but be an ass when she was just mere inches away from him, and in his bed, no less! "This mattress can attest that is not true."

Blair's eyes widened and she quickly looked at Richie, who was studying them with a curious gaze. "I can't believe you said that in front of the baby!"

"He doesn't know what we're talking about. His vocabulary consists of four words, Waldorf," Chuck chuckled.

"He's learning! He'll pick up anything. Do you really want to be responsible for corrupting this child?" She snapped.

"I'm not –"

And his sentence was cut off when a very loud fart sounded in the dark room. Chuck looked at Blair; Blair looked at Chuck.

"Don't even think –" Blair started.

"Well, it wasn't me!" Chuck snapped.

They both stopped and stared at the baby. Richie sucked innocently on his pacifier. And then the smell hit them. They quickly scrambled out of bed, glaring at the baby.

Richie sat up, confused by his abandonment, and began crying once more.

"Ugh," Blair sighed dejectedly. "He's got no control of his body functions!"

"He's a baby!" Chuck defended, but was clearly not about to jump in and get the baby with the scent still lingering around.

"Get some air freshener or something!" She shoved him and turned to Richie. "It's ok. We're right here. You're ok. No need to cry."

Richie, of course, didn't understand her and stood up on the bed and began walking to her with his arms outstretched. Blair jumped forward before he fell off the edge of the bed and quickly picked him up, breathing in from her mouth.

Chuck came out of the bathroom with a bottle of freshener and sprayed it around the room. They both relaxed once the smell was masked. Blair took Richie back to the bed and Chuck watched her, afraid that more gas would attack them.

"Come to bed," Blair ordered. "This is your child, not mine. I will not be stuck with it."

Chuck took his bottle of freshener with him and laid it on his bedside table. That's when Richie spotted his scarf on the same table. His eyes widened and he made a beeline for it. Chuck quickly grabbed his precious scarf and held it out of harm's way.

Richie, stunned at being denied the colorful scarf, let out an angry scream that turned his face pink.

"Oh, my God, Chuck! Give it to him!" Blair demanded, sitting up and watching in horror at the tantrum the baby was about to throw.

Chuck was not budging. He held his own baby to him and out of the child's grabby hands. "No way. No. Blair, this is _my_ scarf. Not his. I'll get him another one."

Blair watched as Chuck quickly scanned his closet and handed the baby another scarf, red with fringe. The child eyed it for a moment, and then threw it on the floor with all of his baby-strength and yelled for Chuck's scarf.

"No!" Chuck cried back, horrified at having to give the baby his scarf. Blair rolled her eyes at him.

"Chuck, give it to him while we get him to sleep. He won't harm it, then you can pull it off him once he's asleep," she said. "It can't be worse than the things Kristy McDowell claimed she did with it."

Chuck glared at her. "Those were lies. Didn't you notice that she disappeared to France a little bit after that incident?"

Blair raised a brow, impressed but undeterred. "Give it to the baby."

Richie sobbed.

Chuck growled. "No. I'm not giving it to him, Blair. I'm just not. I'm putting my foot down."

Richie clutched Chuck's scarf contently as he settled between Chuck and Blair. He snuggled into the pillow and pressed the scarf to his face, murmuring nonsense. Blair smiled at him. He was finally at ease.

"See? He likes it," she told a very pissed off Chuck, who refused to acknowledge her.

"I can't talk to you right now," he ground out.

"I wasn't the one who wanted your filthy scarf," she reminded him.

"You made me give it to him," he snapped back. "And it's not filthy."

She tried guilt-tripping him. "You didn't have to do what I said. You could've kept it from him and let him go to sleep crying and hurt."

Chuck turned his head and glanced at her. "We both know I have a very hard time saying no to you," he finally replied. And they were silent. Because up until now, it had been all about the baby. The baby had been taking over their conversations, their actions, their gestures. Now the baby was content and at ease, and it was just the two of them. In a room. In a bed. With only twelve inches between them.

Blair gulped and felt her head go light. This is what Chuck did to her. Made her question her motives. Made her question her decisions. Made her _reconsider,_ and Blair Waldorf never reconsidered. But not with Chuck. He was an enigma that in the past year had taken over her rationality, her thoughts, her dreams. And it was downright perverse how he could unmask her with just a look from his eyes. She found that when he acted like this, her strength was always tested.

"Be quiet, Bass," she whispered. "Let the baby go to sleep."

Richie kicked his foot and turned his back on Blair to stare at Chuck. Chuck blinked back at him, and the baby smiled, pressing his face against the pillow and still clutching his new 'toy' in his hand.

Something soft and odd began happening inside Chuck Bass. It was the strangest feeling. He'd had it a couple of times in his life. Most of those 'soft' feelings were held for Blair, when he hurt her and she was close to tears before him. Soft moments. When Nate broke his arm in 5th grade because of Chuck. He'd had to get stitches, and Chuck was in the room when his best friend had a huge needle stuck inside the cut. He'd felt incredibly bad. When he thought back to how he'd yelled at Eric. Soft moments.

Right now? He was feeling soft again. He pursed his lips and sighed.

"Just don't stain it, ok?" He told him, and Richie held the scarf to Chuck's nose for him to smell. And that was when Chuck realized that the scarf smelled like him… And a little bit like Blair.

Richie smiled at him once more and settled on a position. Chuck and Blair were eerily quiet when he finally began to doze off and, finally, after Blair ran her fingers through his soft hair, he closed his eyes and went to sleep.

Blair's eyes looked at Chuck in the darkness. "Slowly. I will get up first."

His eyes narrowed. "Let me get up first, I need to call Mike and have him look into this."

She glared back at him. "Is this all you can think of at this moment? Your P.I?"

"He's the best there is," Chuck countered.

The baby mumbled and they were quiet.

"You're going to wake him!" She chided in a harsh whisper.

His nostrils flared as she slowly got up from the bed, picking up her shoes on the way to the door and sneaking out. She turned to him and motioned for him to join her. He turned to the baby and picked up the end of his scarf and slowly began extracting it from Richie's little fingers. The baby moved in his sleep and flexed his fingers, but didn't wake. Chuck smirked and slowly got up from the bed, pausing a few times when the baby stirred, and then finally made it to the door where Blair was glaring at him and his scarf.

"I'm going to hide it," he informed her.

That's when Richie woke and found himself alone on the bed. They stared back guiltily at him, and he looked downright betrayed. He let out a loud yell when he realized his scarf had also been taken from him.

"You just _had_ to take the scarf, didn't you?" She seethed as she walked back to the bed, yanking the scarf with her.

------------

_Saturday, 12am_

Blair came back in from the kitchen with a cup of hot tea in her hands and took a seat next to Chuck as he finished up with his P.I.

"Just find out what you can and as soon as possible. He needs to have a relative somewhere… OK, let me know." And he hung up and glanced at her. "He's on it."

Blair shifted and tucked her feet under her, a move that was not unnoticed by him. She did it so very gracefully and sexily that it woke his groin once more. He gulped and looked away.

"We need to call the nanny service, see if they can be here first thing in the morning," she said, sipping her tea. Chuck noticed that she looked exhausted. It wasn't like he could place her in Serena's room – that room would reek of urine for the time being, and he was keeping it locked. He could offer her the guest bedroom, but it was in the other side of the house, and they wouldn't be able to hear the kid screaming. He was contemplating giving her his room and sleeping on the couch, but he was pretty sure he wasn't that 'soft' just yet.

So he opted for picking up the phone and calling the nanny service. Their 24-hour operator picked up and agreed to send some candidates in the morning.

"Just like that?" Blair asked.

Chuck stared at her once he had hung up. "What do you mean?"

"They didn't ask what the baby likes."

"We don't know what he likes."

"They didn't ask if we preferred someone who knew English."

"I don't think it matters."

"Of course it matters, Chuck!" Blair sighed. "Eleanor first got Dorota when I was seven, and she was sent to both English and etiquette school."

He threw her a glance. "Fine. We'll 'interview' them and analyze them à la Queen B. Happy?"

She smiled happily. "Yes."

She studied him for a minute; he looked tired and worn out. And he'd admitted to not being able to say no to her. That counted for something, right? That should count for a lot more, but she was so hungry and nearly desperate for the words he just wouldn't say that she physically restrained herself from scooting closer to him. Just to feel his warmth.

So she looked away, and he sensed that her body language changed.

"Why don't you go to bed? Use the guestroom," he suggested.

She smiled a little, nearly touched. "What are you going to do when the baby starts screaming?"

"I'll…" He looked around, truthfully not sure on what to do. He wasn't the holding babies type of guy. Never had been. Never really wanted to be. "…Come wake you."

Blair nodded, still amused. "It's ok. I'll sleep on the couch…"

"What? Blair Waldorf sleep on a couch?" He teased, slightly smirking.

"I've slept on couches before, Bass. It's not a big deal. It's only tonight, and then tomorrow we'll have nannies. I'll be home – you'll be partying…" She shrugged her shoulders, her voice nearly leaving her.

He stared at her and opened his mouth to say something, but truthfully the words had left him. She just looked so hurt still that he could hardly reach out to her. He'd messed her up. Messed her up good, and lacking relationship experience meant he had no cards in his pocket but flowers, plotting, and apologies. That was it.

He turned his body into her, and she stiffened, staring at him.

Of course, that was when Richie woke with a loud cry. They sat up and turned around, then scrambled, rushing into his room, nearly pushing one another to get there first.

The baby was sitting up in the middle of the bed, pacifier gone, buried under blankets with Chuck's scarf still tightly clutched in his hand, sobbing. Blair went to the right of the bed and sat down. The baby crawled to her and latched on. Blair stared at Chuck as he slowly sat down on the other end, and she ran her fingers through Richie's hair.

Chuck grabbed the forgotten pacifier and motioned to give it to Richie. The little boy spotted his movements from the corner of his eye and opened his mouth. Chuck was startled for a minute and then reached and placed it in his mouth. Richie made a content noise and settled once more against Blair, sucking furiously.

"There…" Blair whispered to him. "Better. He probably lost it in his sleep."

Blair yawned, and Chuck struggled to keep his own yawn in.

"Let's get him to sleep so we can sleep ourselves," he murmured, and she nodded, lying down on the bed.

Richie snuggled under the blanket and went and curled himself against Chuck, his scarf still in hand as he sighed sleepily. Chuck looked down at him and then looked over at Blair, clearly confused and just a bit scared.

"Just hold him. He just wants to be held," she explained, motioning with her hand.

Chuck took a large gulp and slowly brought his hand down, curling it around the child's small back until it felt settled and right. The baby sighed and squished himself more against Chuck. Blair smiled and slowly relaxed against Chuck's pillows. She was so close he could smell her.

She reached out and touched the baby's hair, making him murmur. Her own eyes were hazy and heavy and, without noticing, she slowly drifted to sleep.

Chuck felt the child do the same in his arms. He stared at Blair, whose lips were slightly parted. Her face was relaxed and stunningly beautiful. He carefully rested back on his pillows as the child settled, and Blair stirred slightly. He stared at her for a while before the overwhelming sensation that he had truly lost her and they were back just being friends took over him. He thought that this must be what dying felt like.

"I love you…" he whispered to her. She didn't move, just continued her slow steady breathing. "I love you, Blair Waldorf."

He blinked, then turned his head and stared at the ceiling. He needed to fix this. He needed to fix them. He needed to fix her.

Richie murmured something unintelligible in his sleep, and Chuck instinctively held him closer, then felt his heavy and tired eyes give in. He decided he would just rest for a minute. Just a minute, because Blair's scent was all over him and the bed was warm and comfortable. So he gave in.

When Blair blinked and opened her eyes, she felt a new sensation surround her. It was still dark. She felt she had slept for barely a minute. Her head felt heavy, and she felt… This was odd… She felt… _Wet._

She blinked and opened her eyes slowly. Richie was now nearly on top of her, still happily sucking on his pacifier. She furrowed her brows. Why was she wet? She slowly lifted the covers, then let out a high pitch scream that made Chuck bolt up awake and Richie let out a loud wail.

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Tbc…

the next part may not be up for a few days as I'm traveling :(


	4. Chapter 4

**Title: ****Bringing Up Baby**

Author: Isabelle

Rating: PG

Disclaimer: I do not own Gossip Girl, and Chuck Bass is not locked in my closet. But Blair might be ;)

Spoilers: Post 2.16. After avoiding one another, Chuck and Blair arrive to the Van der Bass home to find a small child has been left for the Bass family. This follows the first 48 hrs of C and B adjusting to having a small child to care for and realizing they're anything but over one another.

A/N – This will be a much lighter piece, full of fluff and fun moments as the hours tick by and Chuck & Blair realize what it takes to be a family. A special thank you to Tati, my always faithful beta *kiss*

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**(Chapter 4)**

_Saturday, 1am_

"What the fuck, Blair?" Chuck cried, bolting and turning to her. Richie let out another loud wail, confused and unsure of whom to turn to since Blair was holding him at arm's length as she continued crying out.

"He's peed! Oh, my God, I'm covered in urine!" She shouted at Chuck. Chuck scampered off the bed in an instant, letting out a loud groan when he realized he was also wet.

"Mother fuc –"

"Get him off me!" Blair demanded. "Oh, my God, I'm so done."

"I'm not touching him!" Chuck snapped back, his legs wide opened to avoid the cloth to sticking to either one.

"Chuck!" She whined.

"Mama!" Richie cried, clutching at her arms.

"In the shower, c'mon," Chuck grunted, still spitting mad and ready to get in his limo and go as far from this mess as possible. He helped Blair with Richie, but neither was really comfortable touching one another or the child. They made it to Chuck's shower after he turned the water on to a nice, warm temperature.

Richie, stunned, whimpered and clutched onto Blair, who looked just miserable herself. Chuck began removing his shirt with a grimace as Blair grabbed the soap and handed it to him. Chuck scrubbed himself vigorously, still grimacing. He then unbuckled his pants and, before Blair could protest, he had dropped them, watching them stick to the bottom of the shower. Richie stopped crying and watched Chuck with wide eyes.

So there was her ex-whatever he was – _ex-lover_ standing before her in nothing but silk stripped boxers. Wearing nothing else. Blair's thoughts, which had previously consisted of 'OMFG I got peed on,' made a sharp turn to 'OMFG. OMFG'. She gulped and Richie's fingers tightened on her shoulder.

Chuck then turned and grabbed Richie, the baby's now-soaked diaper slipped from his slim legs and plopped down on the floor. Richie looked down wide-eyed.

"Oh no," he whispered.

Chuck shook his head and held the kid under the water to rinse him as Blair slowly slipped out of her dress, remaining in her small slip. As the water pounded on her, the material became translucent. His crotch was apparently happy about this, but he forced his mind to focus. Focus, focus.

Richie kicked his legs and began crying once more. He wanted a bed. He was exhausted.

Blair took the soap and quickly cleaned Richie as Chuck held him up. While Chuck rinsed him, she soaped herself down, grimacing at her ruined clothing.

Once she was done, Richie held out his arms for Blair to take him, which she did with a sigh.

"I told you the diaper was on wrong. It was too loose. The pee seeped right out," she snapped at Chuck, so very tired herself and ready to throw in the towel. Children sucked.

Richie snuggled closer as Chuck turned off the water and grabbed them a towel. He quickly threw one over Blair's shivering form, long enough to cover both her and the baby, and then grabbed one for himself.

"I think I'm going to smell like pee for days," he said, annoyed.

"Well, you'll definitely have to say goodbye to your favorite mattress," she said, smirking. "And your scarf…"

His eyes suddenly widened, and he dashed into the room, with Blair watching him in amusement. He went to the bed and carefully plucked his scarf. He let out a visible sigh when he found it completely dry.

"Yes!" He whispered.

"Mine!" Richie cried when he spotted the scarf while huddled under the towel.

"Oh no," Chuck corrected him firmly.

Blair rolled her eyes. "Will you stop fighting with the baby and find us a place to sleep?"

Chuck's eyes narrowed as he handed over the scarf to the child, who happily clutched it to his wet face. While Blair put a the diaper on Richie, much tighter this time despite his whimpering, Chuck grabbed some blankets for the guest room.

Blair took the little boy back to Chuck's room and started digging through his drawers to find his pajamas. She slipped an undershirt on the boy and the little figure drowned in it, but at least he wasn't naked. Blair took one of Chuck's silk pajamas and slipped it on herself, dropping the wet slip on top the ruined bed. The maids were going to love them in the morning.

Richie held his arms up for Blair to carry him once more. She found him his pacifier, and he looked ecstatic to have it back. His eyes were red and blotchy, and the sleep and tiredness were evident on his face. She was sure they were mirrored on her own. Children were so utterly exhausting.

"Mimi," he murmured to Blair, and Blair walked out of the smelly room into the living room to find Chuck still in a towel, looking worse for the wear. His eyes brightened slightly when he noticed she was in his pajamas, but he quickly hid it like he always hid things he thought she wouldn't enjoy. This somehow pleased her because it was a sense of familiarity. She could always handle leering Chuck, but this quiet, nearly polite Chuck before her was a whole new beast that she didn't quite know how to handle.

"Looks good on you, Waldorf," he commented, walking past her and Richie. Richie was semi-alert, his little back was straight as he followed Chuck's movements with his wide eyes. Thinking that Chuck was leaving them alone, he whimpered and looked pitifully at Blair for her to intervene. "Guest room," Chuck called out to them, and Blair walked to the back part and opened the guest bedroom. Richie's neck was craned, trying to get a look at Chuck as he continued whimpering and clutching his scarf.

"He'll be back," Blair assured him, but the wide hazel eyes that were growing larger and wetter by the second didn't understand her.

Blair sighed, looking at the inviting bed. "C'mon." She set him down on the bed., and he was about to wail, so she quickly lay next to him. He sighed contentedly.

"Mimi," he murmured through his pacifier.

"Yes, let's sleep," she said as she tugged the thick blanket over them. Richie snuggled next to her, tucking his little head under her chin. She smiled slightly and held him close. He was just a little ball of fluff, all willing and needing to be loved. No pretext, no games – just honest love. That's how Chuck found her, curled under the blankets with the small child tucked under her chin as he drooled on his scarf. Chuck grimaced and settled in next to them.

"My bed is ruined," he commented, and Richie blinked and looked over at Chuck.

"Mimi," he murmured and pulled him closer. Chuck and Blair's faces were so very close and warm that their eyes connected and, for a moment, they were somewhere else, in another time – perhaps in the future. In the very distant future.

"You're good with him," Chuck mentioned to Blair. "I mean, it's not as entertaining as watching you scream when he wants to be held but it's… quite entertaining."

Blair swallowed and looked down at the little head that was blinking sleepily at them.

"He's not that bad," she commented, shrugging her shoulders.

"You say that because it's not your bed that is wet and disgusting," he replied, but then a small little hand curled around his thumb, and he felt… warm and soft once more.

"He likes you," she said, and she would have been smiling if there weren't so much pain in her eyes.

"I'm a likable guy," he agreed, and she did finally smile as she moved to turn off the lights.

They were silent. Silent in the night. Nearly peaceful.

"Blair?" He asked.

He saw her silhouette shift. "Yes?"

"I need some help," he admitted.

She was quiet, and he could feel the child breathing in and out. He was dead to the world.

"With what?" she asked. Her voice was apprehensive, and he could appreciate that. She had every right to be scared of him.

"I…" He swallowed. "I want to do something, and I don't know how to do it."

He heard her swallow. She didn't say anything, was not going to help him with this until he verbalized it. He knew it.

"I want… _us_ to be better… and I need some help getting there. To the better," he finally admitted.

And then, after a minute of wondering if she was asleep or was just too sad to respond, he felt her hand sneak out and grab his, startling him a bit. She carefully threaded her fingers through his, and the warmth that spread through him from the small act made him wonder if he had been high when he had once told her that holding hands was something they didn't do. Definitely high.

_Saturday, 2am_

A shout, a giggle, and a rumble later, the words "Opa!" were heard.

She heard the happy cries and laughing far, far away and slowly blinked, feeling a small little hand curled around her neck and the happy suckling noises of a baby with a pacifier.

The door to their room was thrown wide open and there, in the middle, was a very drunk, very disheveled, and very happy Serena.

"Opa!" And she let out a happy squeal of delight. She tripped, and Blair sat up, now fully awake. This woke Richie, who sat up, pacifier lost and crying once more. Chuck groaned and rolled up, staring at his step sister, missing a shoe and coat. And possibly her mind. "Oh, my God!" Serena cried, blinking at the child.

"Nate!" Serena yelled loudly and, from over her shoulder, Nate's disheveled head popped up. Also drunk, probably high, missing half his outfit and leaning on Serena's form. He took in the sight before him, confused as always and almost incredulous.

"How long were we gone?" She asked as they stared at the child sitting between Chuck and Blair. Richie whimpered and wrapped his arms around Chuck, who had to heft him up.

Nate and Serena burst into hysterical laugher, falling on the floor on top of one another, finding this situation as improbable as aliens landing in central park.

Blair rolled her eyes, annoyed with life. This constantly interrupted sleep was sure to give her wrinkles.

"Would you two stop it? You've woken him!" Blair hissed at the two of them laughing on the floor.

"We're gone for like…" Serena gestured with her hand, like she had no idea what time and place was. "And then Chuck and B-blair have a b-baby!" Serena was laughing incoherently again. Nate was equally as amused, rolling with laugher next to her.

Blair got out of the bed and stomped to where the two were sprawled on the carpeted floor. "Stop it! You're getting him riled up!"

More hysterical laugher.

"Opa!" Serena threw in for good measure.

"She danced on the table!" Nate put in, and they went into hysterical laugher once more. Richie stopped crying and began giggling.

"And broke some plates! Oh, my God, B it was so much fun! Much funner than making a baby," Serena pouted.

Chuck stood up with the kid attached to his neck and looked down at the two.

"That makes me sad for you, Sister," Chuck murmured.

"Opa!" Richie threw in, and Chuck smirked.

"Oh, look, Natie!" Serena pointed to the baby as half her hair fell over her face. Nate took in the sight of Chuck holding the kid and fell once more into laugher.

Chuck's jaw twitched, and Richie offered Serena his pacifier. "Bobo…" he explained.

"Oh, my God…" Serena was staring at the baby. "Shit, he looks nothing like you, Chuck. Are you sure…?"

Blair sighed loudly. "He's not ours! He's actually _yours_."

Serena stared at the baby with Chuck's scarf firmly clasped in his little fist. Then her face grew dark. "I'm gonna be sick."

Nate laughed, and Blair blanched. She couldn't handle any more accidents, so she yanked her best friend's hand and pulled her to the bathroom. A second later, the boys heard the vomiting outside.

"Uh oh!" Richie said loudly.

Nate looked sick himself.

Chuck smirked. "Like old times," he commented and pushed at Nate with his foot. "Use the other bathroom."

Nate stumbled to stand, Chuck having to grab his arm to steady him as he moved toward the other facility. In he went, and Chuck stood outside as Nate barfed his own liquid-content.

"Uh oh!" Richie repeated, then firmly placed his pacifier in his mouth.

"Yeah, they're bad," Chuck agreed, rubbing his neck and walking back to Blair, who had just exited the bathroom looking exhausted.

Richie spotted her and held out his hands in a whimper. Blair walked to them and picked up the baby, groaning.

"He's heavy," she said as Richie laid his head on her shoulder, peeking behind her at Serena, who was stumbling out of the bathroom.

"Uh oh," he repeated, pointing his little finger to the blonde.

Chuck sighed, grabbed his stepsister, and took her to her bedroom with Blair following behind. Nate also wobbled out of the guest bathroom, eyes blood shot and weary.

"C'mon," Blair told him, pulling him to Serena's room. Nate was still blinking at the baby like he had missed a couple of chapters of life and now it was coming to him too fast and too much.

Once inside Serena's room Blair scrunched her nose. The place smelled disgusting.

"Might as well place them in here. In case they puke, the mattress is already shot," Chuck explained as Serena flattened herself on her bare mattress, noticing not a thing as she started snoring the second her head hit the mattress.

"What's that smell?" Nate mumbled as Chuck guided him to the same mattress.

"Nothing, you puked," Blair nodded as Nate landed on the bed.

"Oh… ok…" And he was out, both blonds a mess and completely oblivious.

"Uh oh," seemed to be Richie's favorite word when it came to the other two.

"They're going to kill us in the morning," Blair smiled as they exited the room and closed the door behind them.

"A little payback for waking the kid," Chuck mentioned, and Blair and he had a sudden moment of understanding. Was it always like this? Them caring for the other two? Once Chuck had built up his resistance to alcohol at age fourteen and a half, she had not seen him drunk until the mess with his father's death. And she rarely got out of control. Yes, it was mostly Serena and Nate acting the happy fools, wasn't it? Could you even blame them for having drunken sex? The answer was yes, of course, Blair reasoned.

"Fair enough," she nodded.

Richie then began crying, and pulling out of Blair's arms. She let him go, and he went directly to a forgotten baby bottle on the floor. They watched him with the empty bottle. He cried again, rubbing his eyes and looking at them pleadingly.

"I think he's hungry," Chuck reasoned.

"If we feed him, he'll pee." Blair warned him.

"He seems to do that regardless of what we do. It's on automatic," Chuck said, walking to Richie and grabbing the bottle. Richie whimpered, and Blair picked him up, following Chuck to the kitchen. She watched as he poured some milk inside the bottle, twisted the cap back on, and handed it to the baby.

The baby eagerly took it, but the moment he put it in his mouth he grimaced and let out a cry.

"No!" He said.

Blair sighed, rubbing her eyes. "Warm it – see if he likes it."

Chuck looked at the bottle, and then poured its contents in a mug and heated it up in the microwave.

Richie watched Chuck once he managed to get the warm milk back into the bottle. The entire kitchen counter was a mess.

"How many maids can we get in the morning?" She inquired. At this rate, Lily was not going to have a house left by the time she came back. Served her right, leaving the two of them in charge of a baby.

"As many as it takes." Chuck answered and walked back to them, handing the bottle to Richie, who refused it. "Here, now, it's warm," Chuck insisted. The little boy shook his head, pushing the bottle away and Chuck groaned.

"Here, give me," Blair said, and Chuck followed her back to the bedroom. She slipped into the bed, and Chuck slid in right behind her, surprising her. She laid the baby down as he stared up at them and placed the bottle back to his lips.

"C'mon…" She pleaded. Richie finally relented, and they could see his happiness when he realized the milk was now warm. He sighed contently and began suckling in earnest, placing his little hand over Blair's and never taking his wide eyes away from them.

Richie's soft noises filled the room, and Blair caught Chuck smiling softly. "He's a good baby," she mentioned, and his smile dropped when he realized she was watching him.

"Yeah… Well, I wouldn't know," he amended. "Don't have anything to really compare him to."

Richie was almost done with the bottle when the suckling slowed down, and his eyes began to slowly close, sleep taking over him once more. Chuck reached around Blair and pulled a blanket around their forms, making them snuggle together in the large bed. Blair pulled the bottle out of the baby's mouth, leaving his little mouth open and his eyes closed. Quietly, she handed the bottle to Chuck, who placed it next to him on the night table. Then he handed her the pacifier, which she placed against the child's lips, and he quickly latched on to it.

This time there was no quiet conversation or small revelations. Chuck reached out and drape his arm around her waist, pulling her against his chest. He felt her stiffen slightly when he did, but she slowly let herself relax into his touch.

"Goodnight, Waldorf."

Three hours later, the damn alarm went off in the room, waking them all back up and sending the child crying once more.

"This night just won't end," he heard her murmur as Richie wailed loudly.

--------

Tbc…


	5. Chapter 5

Title: Bringing Up Baby

Author: Isabelle

Rating: PG

Disclaimer: I do not own Gossip Girl, and Chuck Bass is not locked in my closet. But Blair might be ;)

Spoilers: Post 2.16. After avoiding one another, Chuck and Blair arrive at the Van der Bass home to find that a small child has been left for the Bass family. This follows the first 48 hrs of C and B adjusting to having a small child to care and realizing they're anything but over one another.

A/N - A special thank you to Tati, my always faithful beta *kiss*

---------

**(Chapter 5)**

_Saturday, 5am_

Chuck groaned and rolled over, smacking the alarm clock.

"It's from when Cece stayed over. The woman needed to wake up at 5am," he grumbled, half asleep.

Blair was nearly passed out with Richie whimpering next to her as he buried himself under the blanket, seeking her warmth. Chuck threw his arm around them once more and snored back to sleep.

Blair idly wondered if this would be their life in the future. His distinctly male scent lulling her to sleep while their child burrowed under their warmth.

"Chuck?" Blair murmured.

"Humm?" He asked, eyes closed.

She didn't say anything, and that was when he realized she had fallen asleep, softly snoring with her nose buried in Richie's hair. He blinked and peered over at her. Then he kissed her shoulder. A self satisfied smirk appeared on his face because wearing his pajamas made her smell like him.

_Saturday, 6am_

Buzzzzz….

Buzzz……

Blair groaned, shifting to find Chuck Bass's nose pressed behind her ear, his arm firmly wrapped around her stomach. She sighed and let herself relax against him and the warmth that covered her. That was when she remembered how exactly they had gotten there.

The child.

Her eyes widened and she looked ahead.

Richie was sitting on the bed, his little body under Chuck's large shirt with a cell phone in hand. Her eyes widened as his little fingers managed to open it and he pressed it to his ear.

"Hello?" He asked in a small voice.

Blair scrambled out of Chuck's confused and sleepy grasp. Richie, thinking it was a game, scrambled out of the way with a wide smile on his face.

Blair could hear her mother on the other line.

"No! Bad baby!" Blair yelled.

Chuck sat up, and Richie slithered out of the bed, giggling. "Hello," he repeated.

Blair heard the clear confusion in her mother's stunned voice.

"Give me the phone _now_," Blair snapped, and the child's eyes widened. He dropped the phone and began to cry, afraid of her tone of voice. Chuck sighed audibly on his end as Richie sprinted to Chuck and climbed on top of him, mumbling and pointing his finger accusingly at Blair, who was busy grabbing the phone.

"Yeah, she's mean," Chuck acknowledged as Richie buried a wet face into his chest.

"Mom?" Blair gasped, placing the phone on her ear.

"Blair Cornelia Waldorf, was that a child?" Eleanor screeched. Blair winced as she looked over at Chuck, who was smirking as Richie continued babbling on about how mean she was.

"Yes, I'm sorry, Mom. I can't talk, you woke me –"

"What are you doing with a child?" Eleanor demanded.

"It's Chuck's." And she regretted the words the moment they left her mouth. Chuck's smirk widened, and she glared back at him.

"Charles has a child? Really, Blair!"

"It's a long story. It's not really his," Blair babbled. Chuck was straight up laughing now.

"Are you with him right now?" Eleanor snapped.

"Y-yes," Blair's voice was small.

"Sleeping?" Eleanor continued.

And Blair then realized her hole was the size of North America.

"Well –"

"Together?" Her mother's voice raised a few octaves, and Blair winced. "I demand you come home."

"I-I can't," Blair looked over at Richie, who was now completely curled on top of Chuck, eyeing her warily as he suckled furiously on the pacifier Chuck had stuffed in him to keep him quiet.

"What do you mean you can't? Of course you can, I'll send a car over," Eleanor continued.

"No, Mom. Chuck doesn't know how to take care of a kid, and Lily is in Spain," she continued. "And we're interviewing nannies."

Her mother sputtered incredulously. Richie mumbled and held a hand out to her.

"Mom, look I can't talk. I have to change the baby's diapers."

"Blair Waldorf!"

And she had hung up to glare at Chuck, who was chuckling loudly.

"If she shows up with an ax, I wouldn't be surprised," she remarked and slid back into the bed. Richie was still eyeing her wearily, and she sighed.

"I'm sorry, ok? My mother is just crazy," she explained to the child. He mumbled something back. Chuck sat up, the kid still in his arms, and picked him up to hand him to Blair. Richie's little legs curled up and he finally reached out with his arms towards Blair.

Blair took him, and he clutched her chest, sighing. She felt a soft and warm sensation fill her as she held him to her, softly running her fingers through his messy hair. That was when she caught Chuck watching her, and she held his gaze this time. Because, really, how long were they going to keep averting gazes?

"Thanks," he finally said. "For not abandoning me in my time of need."

"Apparently, it's a pattern," she shot back and, this time, she did look away because she was still picturing him spending all night with hoes while she prepared a lovely meal for them. And it hurt, it actually burned, and if she could she would yank it from her soul because he was just going to keep hurting her and hurting her until all that was left was a shell of what Blair Waldorf used to be. But he had asked her once upon a time, hadn't he? He'd said _Are you sure?_ And she had responded by kissing him. She had acquiesced.

And it had hurt. It had been raw, unbearable pain, but of one thing she was certain: it was real. _They_ had been real. They were still real. And maybe this is what real love felt like. Not like it had been with Nate, were it was all comfort and familiarity. Every moment with Chuck was new and amazing, and it kept her guessing and ignited something in her that wanted to explode over and over. It was as if her soul was bursting to be free, finally free, after years of confinement.

So this is love, she had thought when the pain had taken over her heart after his note by her bed. So this was love. To worry entirely about someone without any thought for yourself. It was selfless love, and it was new. It frightened her, and she could see that it frightened him also. She saw it in his eyes. They were so young. You're not supposed to find this type of love when you're this young. You're guaranteed to mess it up, and she didn't know what was scarier: actually letting go of the fear of love so young, or ruining it all and having to spend the rest of her life looking back at it. Regretting things and wishing things had played differently. Double edged sword.

The child in her arms shifted and looked up at her, and she smiled down at him because he wasn't afraid of showing love.

"Blair –" Chuck had begun, but she couldn't listen to him right now. So she quickly stood from the bed and took the child with her.

"I-I need to change his diaper," she announced, walking out into the living room.

Chuck watched her walk away and sighed, sinking back into the bed. She was nearly perfect, too perfect. Like the porcelain antique statues his father had brought home when he was seven. There were twelve of them, and his father held a party to show them off as the crème of New York came to admire them and drink the expensive champagne. Charles had knocked one over. It had been the first time he had truly seen disapproval in his father's face.

He closed his eyes, sighed and rolled out of bed, following Blair's melodic voice to the living room. Richie had a new bottle in his mouth, staring up at Blair as she talked to him and changed his diaper. Chuck grimaced because his Calvin Klein t-shirt was now stained with baby milk. It wasn't right.

"We'll be very picky, don't you worry," she was telling the baby, and he couldn't help but smile because his shirt was huge on her She had rolled up the sleeves, her hair was tossed on top of her head in a lopsided bun – he'd never seen her so disheveled and so very beautiful. "We've had our shares of bad nannies."

Richie murmured and kicked his leg, blinking at Blair.

"Still making boys promises you can't keep," Chuck said, walking to them. Richie's head instantly responded and his little eyes searched him out, fixing his gaze on him.

Blair took a breath and blinked wearily at him.

"I'd hate to see the baby cry when we get him a bad nanny accidentally," he smiled, sitting across from her. She straightened her back and tucked a stray hair behind her ear.

"I was trying to keep him entertained," she snapped and he had to smile because, though she was beautiful when challenged, she was downright stunning when mad. She finished taping the baby's diaper and, with a smirk on her face, she tossed him the dirty one. He nearly jumped out of the way, but it landed right in the middle of his chest.

"Oops," she smiled sweetly. "Catch."

His eyes narrowed; there was nothing funny about diapers. They're just weren't a laughing matter, and he couldn't believe she had taken it there. She lifted the baby up and placed him on his feet. Richie hadn't let go of his bottle and whined when left alone on the floor.

"Go with Chuck," she told the baby, pointing him in the right direction. Richie looked over at Chuck and then at Blair, finally decided to go nowhere. He whined a bit but never stopped suckling on his bottle.

Chuck smirked at her. "Seems like he wants mom and only mom."

Blair threw him a glare. "Fine. But you're going back to bed," she snapped at the child as she stood and held out her hand. Richie pulled the bottle out of his mouth and handed it back to her, burping loudly.

Blair sighed, and Chuck chuckled as she set the bottle down on the table. Richie waddled to the couch and grabbed his pacifier once more, giving Blair his hand. She pulled him to the bedroom, and Chuck watched her, waiting patiently on the couch.

… _Three… two… one…_

"Bass!!"

He smirked and slowly stood up. "Coming, dear."

He found her lying in bed with an unhappy Richie, whose eyes lit up the moment he spotted Chuck.

"Mimi!" Richie cried, and Chuck tossed the wrapped-up diaper in a trash bin and slowly climbed into bed on the other side, facing Blair.

"He won't sleep without you," she informed him, as if he didn't know. She hated admitting it; he could tell by the slight crinkle between her brows.

"C'mon, kid." Chuck pulled the blanket over them, and Blair quickly settled back. He stared at her, and she caught him looking. He didn't look away.

"What are you staring at, Bass?" She asked, and he realized she was nearly breathless.

"At your mouth," he confessed. She really did have the perfect lips. They were perfectly shaped and filled to perfection. He couldn't have asked for lovelier lips. She unconsciously licked them and stared at him, wide eyed.

Without thinking of anything other than how genuinely upset she was with him for saying such things, she reached out and smacked him hard on his arm. He yelped playfully, but louder than he should have, and the baby began to cry.

_Fifteen minutes later_

"We were joking!" Blair told the baby as she rocked him back and forth. Richie was still quite scandalized and continued pressing his wet face against Chuck's $800 silk pajama shirt. Chuck stood, shifting from one foot to the other, looking completely at a loss. At this rate, he was bound to wake Serena and Nate with his cries.

"What _is_ that noise?"

Too late.

He turned to find a very sleepy Serena in need of a long shower watching them. Her left eye was crunchy.

"What is that noise?" She repeated, staring at the child.

Richie sniffled and stared at Serena.

"Uh oh," he said.

"It's a baby," she answered herself, still confused.

"Baby," Richie repeated, and Blair looked delighted.

"New word!" She cried, and Chuck had to smile. He reached out and patted the kid's head.

"Uhmmm…. Hello?" Serena was exasperated. "Why do you have a baby, and why is Nate in my bed?"

"You two were drunk, we had to put you somewhere," Chuck explained.

Serena grimaced. "I think he peed in my bed."

And it took Chuck and Blair a full five minutes of non-stop laughing to compose themselves once more. Richie was happy and laughing with them, though he had no clue what he was laughing about.

"It's not funny! You guys don't know what it's like to wake up smelling of urine," Serena hissed at them. "But you can't tell him, I'd feel horrible."

"Not a word," Chuck promised and smirked at her as she made it to the bathroom to shower.

Blair turned to look at him, the happy baby now playing with her hair. Making it messier. "Let her think that for a minute."

"Wouldn't have it any other way," he nodded and watched her once more, then walked to her and grabbed Richie from her. She was looking more than tired. They were running on only a few hours of sleep.

She watched him as he lifted Richie in his arms and handed the kid his pacifier, which Richie took happily. But not before he did something that neither Chuck nor Blair expected. He leaned in and kissed Chuck. A wet, happy kiss on the cheek.

They both froze and stared at the child.

"Napa," the baby declared and, though they had no idea what the heck it meant, Blair couldn't help but smile widely at Chuck's stunned face. Richie, unaware that he had caused a sensation, promptly stuffed his beloved pacifier in his mouth and leaned his head on Chuck's shoulder.

Blair studied Chuck's stunned expression as his hand slowly wrapped around the baby and held him closer.

Something melted into a puddle of goo at that moment, and she was sure she had developed some heart-shaped irises. He glanced at her and observed her glassy look, gulping slightly at the small warm body in his arms.

To fully understand this, one must understand that Chuck Bass was never freely given love and affection.

Ever.

When he was a child, he could count on his left hand the amount of times Big Bart Bass took him in his arms.

The first time he had fallen, tripped over a rock as they walked towards the limo, and had scrapped his knee. The small six year old had let out a cry and, before the au pair was able to lean in and comfort the child, his father had lifted him and carried him to the limo.

Charles remembered being stunned. It was the first time he called his father Dad. Once the bleeding had stopped, Bart had become stoic once more, but Charles accurately remembered the feeling of being safe in his father's arms.

"I…" His throat felt closed off. "… I have an idea on how to get him to sleep."

Blair was still smiling at him and simply nodded, following him as he carried the baby back into the guest room.

She sat on the bed with the baby on her lap as she watched Chuck Bass roll a large plasma TV into the room. Richie was watching him with wide eyes and even jumped a bit when Chuck turned back into the room.

"He's excited," Blair told Chuck as he turned on the TV. "I think he knows what's coming."

Chuck smirked as he found the inevitable.

Saturday morning cartoons.

Richie let out a happy yell when Donald Duck came on the screen.

"Tata," he declared through his pacifier.

"Perfect," Chuck said as he walked back to the bed. "Five minutes of this, and he'll be dead to the world."

Blair looked at Richie doubtfully. She usually never questioned Chuck's genius plans, but she was having doubts. The child seemed alive and happy and very much awake.

_Fifteen Minutes Later_

A yell woke them.

Blair sat up, realizing she had snoozed off with those damn cartoons and so had Chuck, while Richie sat between them still transfixed on the screen.

"What was that?" Blair asked, still annoyed by her total lack of sleep.

And the door was thrown open once more. This time a frazzled and very upset Nathaniel Archibald entered.

He blinked at them.

"I think Serena peed in her bed," he announced, and Chuck and Blair weren't sure if they were annoyed at being woken or thankful for the endless laughs the other two were providing.

Nate seemed to blink and realize there was a child sitting between them who was happily suckling on his pacifier and staring at him.

"Uh oh," the baby said, pointing his finger.

Nate's confused face would've been priceless had they not seen it countless other times. "Is that a kid?"

Serena chose that moment to come up behind Nate, her hair in a towel and her body in a bathrobe.

"You're up," she told Nate, who narrowed his eyes at her.

"You peed on the bed!" He snapped.

Serena's mouth fell open in disbelief. "I did not! You did!"

"I didn't!" Nate cried. Then, simultaneously, they both turned their heads and stared at the baby, who happily suckled his pacifier.

"Uh oh!" Richie cried out.

Their eyes narrowed at Chuck and Blair, who sported twin innocent faces.

"In our defense, we were running out of beds," Blair confessed.

-------

Tbc…


	6. Chapter 6

**Title: ****Bringing Up Baby**

Author: Isabelle

Rating: PG

Disclaimer: I do not own Gossip Girl, and Chuck Bass is not locked in my closet. But Blair might be ;)

Spoilers: Post 2.16. After avoiding one another, Chuck and Blair arrive at the Van der Bass home to find a small child left for the Bass family. This follows the first 48 hrs of C and B adjusting to having a small child to care for and realizing they're anything but over one another.

A/N –A special thank you to Tati, my always faithful beta *kiss*

---------

**(Chapter 6)**

_Saturday, 7am_

"Oh, my God!" Serena cried, disgusted.

Nate was just confused. "Wait… It was the baby? Where did you get a baby from?"

Richie quickly lost interest in the other two and went back to his morning cartoons. Chuck stood up from the bed. The baby instantly noticed and let out a warning cry. Chuck sighed and sat back down on the bed, watching as Richie relaxed.

Serena and Nate stared in confusion while Blair sighed and sunk back to the bed.

"He's attached," Blair said from between the pillows.

"Mimi," Richie said, burrowing happily into the silk sheet.

"How long is he going to be here?" Serena asked, arms crossed. Nate looked disgusted with life.

"I'm having him investigated," Chuck explained, and Nate raised a brow.

"What? Did someone just drop him off, like, in a basket?" Nate asked, and Blair and Chuck blinked at him.

"No way," Serena shook her head in disbelief.

"You can't keep him," Nate stated the obvious.

"We're not keeping him," Blair put in. "We're babysitting. Kinda of."

Nate and Serena exchanged looks.

"Nannies are coming to interview in an hour. We'll find someone suitable and hand him off," Chuck continued.

"We can't _hand him off,_" Blair snapped at him, pulling the baby to her.

"I didn't mean it that way!" Chuck cried back.

"But you're just ready to pass him off just when you're becoming _attached_," Blair seethed, eyes narrowed.

"What are you trying to say?" Chuck shot back. Richie stared between the two, confused.

"You smell like pee," Serena told Nate.

"That the moment you begin to care about something, you pull back –"

"Why don't you just say what it is that you want to say?" Chuck snapped.

"I don't smell… Oh, I do." Nate frowned, and Serena nodded.

"Well, I'm not letting you," Blair said, pulling the baby from the bed as she stood.

"Are you wearing Chuck's pajamas?" Serena asked Blair.

"Yes, she is," Chuck replied.

"You want them back?" Blair growled at Chuck. Richie sucked furiously on his pacifier, his eyes wide.

"No, he doesn't," Nate managed in a placating tone.

"Well, he's getting them back!" Blair cried and set the baby down. Richie let out a scream. Serena blanched, Nate winced, and Chuck's eyes narrowed as Blair began to unbutton his pajamas.

"What are you doing?" Chuck narrowed his eyes.

"I'm giving them back!"

"You're making the kid cry," Nate attempted to avoid the impending doom.

"Can't keep your clothes on, can you?" Chuck hissed.

Blair let out an unearthly growl.

"Miss Blair!"

The four stopped as they turned to look at a very disturbed Dorota standing in the doorway. Richie let out am even louder wail, his little hands at a loss, no longer holding a pacifier. Blair quickly pulled the silk shirt tighter over her chest, covering herself. Nate let out a breath, Serena stared at the baby, and Chuck was still glaring at Blair from the bed.

"What is happening?" Dorota demanded, then looked at poor Richie, who was staring at her pleadingly. "Oh, poor bebe!" She walked to him and quickly picked him up, sending a glare to Chuck, whom she was sure was to blame for all of this. Richie whimpered and cuddled against Dorota.

"He started it, Dorota," Blair snapped, pointing at Chuck, which created a comic scene as his shirt was so huge on her that not even her hand was visible.

"Shower," Serena scrunched her nose at Nate, who sent her a withering glance.

"Shower," he conceded and left the room before any other fights could ensue.

"I need to… go," Serena announced and quickly turned and left. Dorota rounded on Blair and Chuck.

"Why are you wearing this?" She asked, looking over Blair. "And, Miss Blair, your hair."

Blair fumed, then calmed down when she saw Richie eyeing her wearily. "I'm sorry!" She said to the baby, who whimpered and hid his face in Dorota's stiff collar.

"Now he's upset," Chuck ground out and threw Blair a look.

"Thanks to you!" Blair snapped back.

"You're the one who was desperately undressing in front of Nathaniel," Chuck accused.

Blair's eyes widened as if slapped. "Charles Bass, I hate you. I hate you, I hate you!"

Chuck's nostrils flared.

"STOP IT!" Dorota yelled, Richie let out a loud wail. "You act like small children!" She snapped. Blair and Chuck gaped at her. "Now you have bebe. Now take care of bebe."

She promptly handed Richie to Chuck, who blinked at Dorota.

"Take bebe bath, get him clothes, feed bebe, and play with bebe." She then spoke in Polish, which made Chuck's brows furrow. Blair watched him in near amusement (if she wasn't so very upset at him, she might have laughed). "And no more fighting, eh?" She huffed and placed a large suitcase on the bed with Blair's clothes. "I go. Miss Eleanor very upset."

"No, you can't leave me," Blair insisted.

Dorota cast Chuck a dark look. "You be ok, Miss Blair."

"No, Dorota, you don't understand. The baby hasn't let us sleep. I can't do this without sleep," Blair insisted, her sleeves falling past her hands. She looked helplessly as the maid bustled out of the apartment. "Dorota!"

Blair whined after her. "It's peed on us, there was crap everywhere, he doesn't like his toys –"

"Good practice, Miss Blair," Dorota said, pushing the elevator button.

Blair's eyes widened. "What does that mean?"

Dorota shrugged as she stepped in the elevator and turned to look at Blair. "You want this boy, yes? You want marriage, yes? Well, bebe always come. Good practice."

And the elevator closed while Blair gaped at the closed door. Chuck came out of the room with a pacified Richie in his arms.

"Mama," Richie said when he spotted her. Blair sighed and leaned against the wall, throwing a glowering stare at Chuck, who met her stare right back.

"So… that means she's not staying?" He suggested, attempting to hide a smirk. "At least now I can have my pajamas back."

She scowled at him and marched past him to her luggage. Richie mumbled to Chuck some words, and Chuck nodded, hefting him up. "Yeah, she's pissed."

_Saturday, 8am_

It had taken Hilda, their daytime maid, a full ten minutes to assess the situation. She mumbled in another language, throwing glares at the teens as she went about the usually pristine apartment and tried to arrange things.

That was when Chuck's phone rang, and he quickly took the call because it was from Mike. Blair listened, now dressed in pressed slacks and a modest blouse, as she attempted to comb Richie's hair. They'd just bathed him despite protests and cries, and a local children's store had delivered some baby clothing. Blair had picked out three little outfits, which Richie eyed doubtfully.

One was a pair of lovely cream corduroy pants with a pressed white shirt and a sweet argyle sweater with a pristine mini-bowtie. Blair was partial to it, but wondered how they would get the baby to accept his little bowtie. She had a feeling he would yank it off and throw a fit.

The second outfit was designer mini-jeans and a yellow polo shirt with a tiny little jacket to go with it and shiny black leather shoes. Chuck was partial to that one, but she was worried it would take them forever to get the jeans off when they had to change the diapers (which Chuck reminded her once more that they would no longer be doing, and that had started another argument).

The third outfit, which Serena had insisted on, was a pale blue monstrosity with little lambs and clouds. Chuck had pointed out that, with the matching hat, the child was liable to get confused with a walking ball of cotton candy, eaten by the staff, and never seen again.

Mentally, both Chuck and Blair had discarded the third option, but Serena was hanging around while she waited for her strawberry pancakes to be made and kept saying how baby blue was totally Richie's color.

Nate was once more asleep, now showered, snoring on the sofa. It became humorous when Richie began to stick cheerios in his nostrils.

Chuck had to pull him away, and the baby threw a fit at being removed from his new favorite pastime. So Blair combed his hair as he stood before her in diapers and chewed on the left over cheerios. He offered her a soggy one.

"No thanks," she scrunched up her nose and continued listening to Chuck's conversation.

"Ok, nice work, Mike. See how fast we can get him here." And he hung up. He looked down at his phone, his tousled hair falling slightly over his forehead. He was now out of the pajamas and in one of his impeccable suits. He glanced at Blair, who looked questioningly at him as she set Richie's new baby brush down.

"He's got a dad…" Chuck said carefully. "The mom… kinda kidnapped him."

Blair's eyes widened and looked at the baby, who was lining up his cheerios on the twenty thousand dollar couch and talking to them as he made little train noises.

"Kidnapped?" She gasped.

Chuck nodded, his jaw clenching. "Yes… She was supposed to have him for a weekend, but she's had him for a little over a month."

Blair let out a breath. "Why wasn't this reported?"

Chuck glanced at the baby, who had carefully selected the best cheerio, in his opinion, and stuffed it in his mouth. "The dad's here illegally."

Blair's mouth formed an O.

"Mike's looking into it, see what type of a person he is… We'll see." He looked down and stuffed his phone in his pocket.

"You're having him investigated?" Blair asked, though she knew the answer. It was such a Bart thing to do that seeing Chuck also fall into the patterns his father had taught him sat uncomfortably in her stomach.

Chuck threw her another glance. "We don't know what sort of person he is."

"But he's his dad…" Blair said, and then wisely decided to drop it. "Ok, fine." Chuck was staring at the baby as he made little train noises, and Blair understood. Chuck Bass was already attached to the baby. Who knows… Maybe she was, too.

She stood up abruptly and took the outfit that Chuck had preferred and brought it to the baby. Richie eyed the outfit and promptly backed away and into Chuck.

"No, no," he murmured.

"He's a nudist," Chuck smirked at Blair.

_Fifteen minutes later_

Richie was now hiccupping softly, nestled in Chuck's arms as Blair tied his last shoe. It was official. The kid hated clothing.

"There!" Blair said brightly smiling at the baby, who was furiously suckling on his pacifier and nearly glaring at her. "All done. Not so bad, right?"

"It was bad," Chuck corrected.

"Stop encouraging him," she snapped. "And how did I end up being the bad guy?"

"Next time we'll rock, paper, scissor it out," he joked.

"Mr. Bass." They were interrupted by Hilda, who looked like she'd been working for hours instead of forty-five minutes. "The agency has sent the first nanny." And she threw a look at the child responsible for the chaos in the house.

"Show them to the living room, Hilda – we'll be right out," Chuck nodded, and the woman left them. He turned to Blair and set Richie down on the floor. The baby stared at them, suckling furiously. Blair held out her hand, and the baby reluctantly took it, still not happy that his freedom had been taken away.

"What exactly are we looking for?" Chuck asked as the three of them made their way to the living room.

"Someone of pristine morality, good manners, overall cleanliness. And who speaks English," Blair counted off as he stared at her.

"I'll let you take over, then," Chuck shrugged. They spotted the woman sitting down, looking in wonder at the apartment. She had her hair tied in a bun at the back of her head and wore a simple gray dress and thick black shoes.

The moment Chuck spotted her, he quickly turned around, making Blair run smack into his chest and Richie fall on his butt, confused.

"Bass –"

"Take the kid away," he commanded, and Blair blinked up at him, clearly confused. But his face was serious, so she didn't question it, just grabbed the baby and walked away.

When he waltzed back into the room, he wore a serene expression. Richie had decided he liked all of the trains that had been brought in for him the night before. He was currently running a line down Nate's sleeping leg.

"What was wrong with her?" She snapped, annoyed at being left out of the loop.

"Did you _see_ her fingernails?" He asked, aghast.

_Ten minutes later_

"What was wrong with that one? She looked perfectly fine," Chuck asked crossly. Blair glared at him.

"Oh, she was _fine,_ alright," she snapped.

She'd been a freaking Amazon princess, and Chuck had lapped it up, especially when she said in her little accent. "Oh, I just love cuddling children." And her breasts agreed with her.

"She reminded me of my au pair," he defended.

Blair crossed her name off the list the agency had faxed over. She crossed it out violently.

"And what you did with her is illegal in all fifty states. Can you focus?" She growled.

He watched her diligently put the lists in order with her little notes. He loved what a nerd she was, all she needed was little tortoise glasses and the fantasy was fulfilled. She'd always been the nerd of the four, with her neuroses and her books and her obsession with school and college.

She caught him staring at her. "What?"

He shrugged and allowed Richie, who was climbing behind him, to run his favorite red train cart over his hair. Blair smirked at him as the train went over Chuck's eyebrow.

"Choo choo!" Richie cried, laughing.

"Yes, shoo shoo," Chuck replied, though he was by no means annoyed. Blair could tell by the way he relaxed as the baby climbed all over him.

"Ok, who do we have next?" She asked.

"The one with the mole," Chuck said, preventing Richie's wandering feet from crush his balls.

Blair made a face. "Ugh."

"Yeah. She wasn't it, either," Blair said as she crossed the next potential nanny off the list. Serena wandered in, now fully dressed and confused by their little nanny roulette.

"How many is that?" Serena said wearily.

"We're on number eight. But it's going by fast," Blair assured her.

"Because you hate all of them – there was nothing wrong with the Russian one," Serena pointed out.

"The baby didn't like her," Chuck explained, and his sister rolled her eyes.

"Why don't you guys just care for the baby until Mom gets home, and then let her handle this?" Serena asked, munching on a grape and handing one to Richie when he demanded one.

"Chuck, cut it for him, or he'll choke," Blair said and watched as Chuck took the small green grape from the baby (he threw a fit) and cut it in half, then handed one piece back. The baby settled, but the juice of the grape sprinkled all over Chuck's shirt. He glared at Blair. "Serena, I don't have time to do all of this, but we can't hand the baby over to just anyone."

"The elderly lady looked nice." Serena took a seat next to them.

"No. She was from Idaho," Blair said resolutely.

Serena was at a loss. "And…?"

"Serena," Blair chided, almost as if she were speaking to a small child. "Everyone knows that people from Idaho cannot be trusted."

Serena laughed, and Chuck agreed with Blair. Serena shook her head, walking out. "Only you two understand one another."

"Next!" Blair cried out, and Hilda threw her a glare as she went to get the next woman.

"So what happened to the nanny?" Nate asked wearily when Blair and Chuck came back into the room with the baby in tow. Richie was holding onto Chuck's hand as they walked in.

"Unacceptable choices, that's all they sent us," Blair sighed. "So we've decided to care for Richie until Lily comes home."

Nate and Serena looked over at them doubtfully. "_You_ are caring for the child? The two of you?"

"Yes," Chuck said, feeling more and more comfortable with their choice. They could do this. Feed it, clothe, it, take it to the park. Hell, they were experts at the diaper changing.

Richie stood very still next to Chuck and wore a look of concentration.

"Is that a cheerio in your hair?" Serena asked Nate.

Nate doubtfully touched his head and, sure enough, one was stuck there. "Oh, man!"

Blair smiled. "At least you didn't find the ones in your nose."

Nate stared at the baby. "I think something is wrong with him."

The all looked at the baby, who was slightly red in the face. Blair bent down and looked at him. "What are you doing?"

Chuck looked down worriedly and also bent down, staring at the baby, who in a moment looked relieved and smiled at them.

"What happened?" Serena asked, leaning forward.

"I don't know…" Blair said doubtfully.

"Caca…" Richie said happily, and Chuck groaned loudly.

"I've got to go," Nate sprinted off the couch. "Vanessa's waiting."

"Wait up! I'm headed to Brooklyn," Serena said after him.

Chuck rounded on Blair angrily. "Nanny long legs is not looking so bad now, is she?"

----------

Tbc…


	7. Chapter 7

**Title: ****Bringing Up Baby**

Author: Isabelle

Rating: PG

Disclaimer: I do not own Gossip Girl and Chuck Bass is not locked in my closet. But Blair might be ;)

Spoilers: Post 2.16. After avoiding one another, Chuck and Blair arrive at the Van der Bass home to find a small child left for the Bass family. This follows the first 48 hrs of C and B adjusting to having a small child to care for and realizing they're anything but over one another.

A/N –A special thank you to Tati, my always faithful beta *kiss*

---------

**(Chapter 6)**

_Saturday, 9am_

"Caca," Richie repeated as Blair blinked at him, then took in this snug jeans and little shoes.

She smirked, lifted the baby and placed him in Chuck's arms. "Your turn," she smiled sweetly at him.

"You have to help me, at least for the disposal process," he insisted, looking downright miserable as the smell waffled at him.

"You can do it," she replied, loving every minute of it. "I'll stand back for moral support."

He glared at her and took the kid back towards Serena's room.

"NOT IN MY BED!"

Damn it. They hadn't gotten in the elevator.

Chuck placed the baby down on the guest bed they'd shared, now that it was nicely made. Richie tried to sit up the moment Chuck laid him down. "No, no." Chuck pushed him down as Richie kicked hard and missed Chuck's precious package by a mere inch. "Shit!"

"Oh…" Blair smiled. "Those shoes would've made some real damage."

He held a hand to his balls, defending them from the kid's deadly feet. "No more kicking."

Richie lost his pacifier and tried to roll over.

"Blair! C'mon, give me a hand," he asked desperately as he pulled the baby back down in spite of the constant screaming.

"Ugh," she huffed. "You're so hopeless."

"That's why you love me," he said before he had a chance to think better of it. The pink elephant in the room has just erupted and the world almost seemed to pause.

Blair's heart beat a mile a minute. She couldn't believe he had gone there, she couldn't believe she had been stupid enough to confess such stupidities to him. She hated being the one in the lurch, she hated being the one who had said it first, still _waiting_ for him to get over his neuroses and perhaps admit that he cared anything at all for her. She gulped and looked away, her fingers shaking slightly as she laid the baby back down.

Chuck was staring at her profile and the soft way her long lashes brushed against her perfect doll-like cheeks. "Blair…"

She sighed as she tried to yank the shoes off a struggling Richie. She let out an airy laugh. "The cotton-candy outfit is starting to look really good now, isn't it?"

Chuck gulped and helped her hold the baby down, but never took his eyes off her face. He should say it. Say it now. Confess, confess, confess. She deserved to know, _needed_ to know. His inability to say it was destroying them faster than he could formulate a plan to save them.

"Blair…" He took a deep breath.

"You don't need to say it," she snapped at him. Her face was turned from him as she took off Richie's jeans. "I actually would rather you didn't," she said quietly. "It won't solve anything… It won't _fix_ us, Chuck. I need a lot more than words from you now."

His heart broke at her words. In pieces, shattering on the duvet. He simply stared at her. Richie instantly sensed the change and began to cry.

"Mama!" Richie shouted, and Blair picked him up and held him against her as Chuck watched her, his soul slowly disintegrating.

No words would fix them. It was too late. Too late. He, Chuck Bass, would have to become a man of action because there was no way he could lose Blair. No way. You could cut him, kill him, throw him in a ditch, hold him back in chains, but he would not lose Blair. Not when he could save her. He might not be able to fix her now, but he would one day be able to help her pick up the pieces of one another they had both shattered. He would do it. Let it take weeks, months, years… He would get _his_ Blair back.

"Help me change him," Blair finally said, attempting to shield her face from his dark and ominous eyes.

The way he was staring at her… burned her. Like he always did. A man shouldn't have that power over any woman; it was like swimming against the strong currents of the ocean. Struggle as you might, one day you'll tire, and eventually get lost within its darkness. And that's what he was, her darkness… that part of her that she always shielded and held back under yards of silk and pearls. Under the poise and the perfection of her decaying years as the nearly Mrs. Archibald, there it lay. Dormant and passive until the day that she let it all go.

It wasn't that Chuck Bass had pulled that side of her out… He didn't pull it… didn't tempt it… he simply offered a helping hand. An outstretched hand that she eagerly took, because she thought she was drowning at the time. She thought that feeling was drowning… But the truth was that Blair didn't know what drowning was until she let herself admit that she loved Chuck Bass.

And now, when her thoughts strayed and wandered, she would start remembering all the times she'd had Chuck as a friend and a confidant, and she would curse herself for never seeing it there.

And here they were… Months later, after the ashes had fallen from their burning passion and their tumultuous non-relationship… Here they were. His eyes, as mysterious and acute as ever, always peeling back her silk and pearls and revealing the true Blair. She couldn't pretend with him, couldn't hide, couldn't do anything but the be herself. Because Chuck Bass set her free. Because the truth set her free.

A man shouldn't have that power over any woman.

"Here, let me…" And Chuck Bass became polite, pulling the baby's last shoe off as she held Richie, his strong and sure hands making light of the otherwise complicated task.

The baby finally let them peel his jeans off and looked over them as Blair held the bag open, waiting to receive the dirty diaper.

Chuck grabbed the baby under his arms and lifted him up. His bum was dirty, and they grimaced.

"There has to be an easier way of doing this," Blair said as she tied the bag and followed Chuck to the bathroom. This time Richie didn't like the water. At all. He cried as they washed him, never stopping – not even when he was re-diapered and dressed, pacifier at hand and red train back in his hand.

"What if he's hungry?" Chuck suggested.

Blair looked doubtfully at the baby. "He had his bottle."

"Liquid diet?" Chuck suggested.

"And the cheerios?" She asked.

"Hardly food," Chuck replied.

She agreed. "Fine." She picked up the phone and in ten minutes, the dining room table was filled with over 30 little glass containers ranging in color from puke-green and funny orange to creepy beige.

"Baby food," Chuck said in near disgust as he surveyed the table. Blair handed the baby to him. Richie's wide eyes were fixed on the tumblers before him, and he soon began reaching out to them.

"Definitely hungry," Chuck laughed, sitting down in a chair and preventing the kid from grabbing the nearest funky-red glass jar.

Blair inspected the items with calculating thought. "He needs a well balanced meal," she began, and Chuck doubted the kid would last long enough for her to put together the perfect four-course meal.

"Just give him something, he's starving," Chuck said, pulling a jar out of the baby's hands and sending him into hysterics.

"Ok, ok. We need meat. What if he's a vegetarian?" Blair asked, slightly scandalized.

"He's most certainly not a vegetarian," Chuck snapped. "He's a Bass. Even temporary Basses are not vegetarians."

"Ok. Chicken. Oh, nice, these are organic!" Blair smiled.

Richie screamed, losing his pacifier.

"Perfect. Chicken. Give it to him now," Chuck demanded.

"Hold up, what do you think? Mixed veggies or squash to go with the chicken? These choices really limit us." Blair chewed on her bottom lip.

Richie grabbed Chuck's bowtie, yanked and cried.

"Squash, just got with the squash," Chuck grunted prying the small fingers from his new Ives Saint Laurent bowtie.

"Hummm…" Blair looked over other jars. "I think the pear would go nicely with it, what do you think?"

"For fuck's sake, Waldorf! The kid's dying here, and I'm dying along with him!"

Blair turned to find Chuck Bass disheveled, Richie's hands yanking at his hair, one little foot on Chuck's chest and the other in Chuck's hand as he once more protected his precious package. She chuckled at seeing him like this.

"Sit him on your lap," she said, opening one jar and grabbing the small silver spoon that had come with the food. Chuck struggled to get the kid to sit down, but the moment Richie spotted the spoon, he eagerly opened his mouth and whined.

Blair took a small scoop of the yellow chicken mush and brought it to the baby. Blair and Chuck's knees touched slightly as they sat before one another, the baby between them. Richie made little satisfied noises as she brought him another scoop of mush, eagerly gulping it down, his little foot happily bouncing on Chuck's knee.

"We've officially nearly starved the baby," Chuck commented as Blair continued feeding Richie until the glass container was completely empty. Richie whined a bit, and she quickly opened the squash bottle. His eyes widened, opening his mouth once more.

"Oh, you were hungry, weren't you?" Blair cooed at Richie, smiling when a dollop of orange mushy baby food slid from Richie's mouth down to Chuck's pant leg.

"That's going to stain," she smirked, and Chuck groaned loudly.

"Ma!" Richie cried when she stopped feeding him, and she quickly continued. He was looking rather full, but it didn't stop his mouth from opening when she unscrewed the pear bottle.

"Shouldn't he have something to drink or something?" Chuck asked dubiously.

Blair fed Richie the pear, watching as he 'chewed' on it and opened his mouth once more. His entire face was officially covered in mush. Yellow, orange and beige mush.

"I think he's fine… He needs another bath, though," she noted.

Chuck looked at the kid and sighed. "This is like a full time job."

"It's probably why they tell you not to have babies so young," she quipped, watching Richie gulp down his latest spoonful. On the next round, he turned his face and whined.

"I think he's had enough," Chuck said, watching the baby.

Blair leaned back and placed the half empty jar on the table. "Bath time!"

Richie rubbed his eyes and turned his head too fast to catch, pressing his face against Chuck's jacket. Even the bowtie ended up with orange mush on it.

Chuck yelped, pulling the baby back, and Blair let out a melodic laugh. "Bath time for two."

-----

_Saturday, 10am_

"I think we should leave him in diapers," Chuck commented as they watched the baby, now fully washed and playing with his toy trains on the floor of the living room.

Chuck was now changed into another sweater and new pants, seeing as his previous outfit was completely ruined.

"We can't," Blair insisted. "We need to head to the park, every child needs the park."

"No – this is a bad idea, Waldorf –"

"I always went to the park," Blair insisted.

"With people who knew what they were doing," Chuck nodded.

"We kinda maybe sorta know what we're doing," she said, but never met his eyes because she knew she was lying through her teeth.

"We have no fucking clue," Chuck specified.

She rounded on him. "So, what do you want to do? Sit here all day, waiting for him to poop and pee and want more food?"

Chuck studied Richie, who was now staring at him with wide hazel eyes. "Fine. Park. But we have to pack adequately."

_Fifteen Minutes later_

"What to pack to the park," Blair said softly as she typed it on Chuck's computer. Her brows furrowed. "No… no… common baby supplies." Her face lit up. "A baby center!"

Behind her Chuck, started his under the radar operation of 'hide the scarf from the baby.' It was too late, the baby had spotted it and instantly started whining for it.

"Let him have your scarf," Blair said, her eyes never leaving her screen as she went over information on one year old babies.

Chuck glared at the back of her head and reluctantly handed the scarf back to Richie. Richie decided this was the perfect new rail for his trains.

"Ok. Grab his bag," she said, and she blanched when she saw Chuck grabbed the old blue bag the baby had come with. "No… Let me call Leo at Chanel and see what he can get me."

Twenty minutes later, she sighed as they looked upon the baby's brand new baby bag.

"Better," Chuck conceded.

"Much," she clarified.

"Much," he accepted, and they had a moment of understanding, both staring at one another and simply smiling. Like stupid idiots. That's when Richie touched the bag they were staring at, and it toppled over.

"Alright, operation 'take baby to the park' has officially begun," Blair announced once Chuck had reluctantly agreed to grab the things as she called them.

Thank goodness that Bart was good friends with the owner of Bugaboo. They had a stroller delivered to the place, which Richie was now moving around the apartment.

"Diapers!" Blair said, and Chuck tossed some diapers into the Chanel baby bag.

"Check," he said.

"Extra clothes."

"Check."

"The wet wipes things."

"Check… Wish we had known about them before."

"You're interrupting the flow."

"Sorry."

"The blanket."

"Check."

"Bug spray."

"Humm… check."

"Flow…"

"I'm flowing."

"Fine. Baby food."

"Check."

"Bottles."

"Check."

"Extra pacifier."

"Check."

"Band aids."

"Check."

"Know-it-all baby book."

"Check."

"Baby."

"Check."

CRASH!

Blair stopped, and Chuck glanced behind her and groaned loudly. The vase. The precious vase he had attempted to save before had now been utterly destroyed. The stroller was apparently quite dangerous.

Richie let out a loud wail.

"Oh, my God, he's hurt!" Blair cried.

They both rushed forward, and Chuck quickly picked up the baby. He was unscathed, but shaking like a leaf. He handed the baby back to Blair, and Blair quickly coddled him, telling him it was alright and that the stupid vase was so mean.

Chuck surveyed the damage. It was a disaster.

"Kid's a menace," he said under his breath.

"Stop it, Chuck. He's upset and very sorry. Aren't you sorry?" She baby-talked.

Chuck's eyes narrowed, and Hilda glared at them as she came in and dutifully started cleaning up the mess. "Let's just get out of here before he destroys the Chinese dolls."

"Chuck! We forgot the changing mat!" Blair cried as they struggled towards the elevator. Chuck – now carrying two bags, a stroller, and a large umbrella – glared at her.

Her only package was Richie, who was suckling on his pacifier and staring at Chuck with wide eyes, his precious scarf in one hand and a train on the other.

"I can't get it. I ran out of hands. I'm the two-hand model, you know," Chuck ground out.

Blair hefted the baby.

"What if we have to change him?" Blair asked.

Chuck sighed, and she waited patiently while he placed the bags down and went for the changing mat. When he finally returned, they entered the elevator along with baby, stroller, and bags.

Richie began to sing as the elevator went down.

The elevator stopped. Floor 12.

The doors opened. An elderly couple saw them, smiled and entered. With a dog. The small pooches that could be easily tucked into a Louis Vuitton carrier.

Richie's eyes zoomed in on the animal, his eyes wide as he leaned forward.

"Bow wow…"

The woman smiled kindly at him and at Blair. "How old is he, dear?"

Blair gulped and looked at Chuck for help.

"A little over a year," Chuck repeated the words Lilly had said. They had _sounded_ right, and Lilly was bound to know more about kids than they ever would, considering she couldn't stop having them and adopting them.

"Ohh," the lady said happily. "Such a lovely boy."

Said lovely boy reached out and yanked her furry dog's ear.

Blair had thought that last night's elevator ride had been the longest and most awkward in the existence of elevators. She had been wrong.

_This_ was the longest elevator ride on the face of the planet.

"No! Bad, Richie!" Blair cried, scandalized. The little boy had dog hair left in his hand.

With the dog yelping, the woman screaming, the man laughing, Chuck holding back a chuckle, Blair attempting to control Richie, and Richie still wanting more of the puppy – it was out of control.

Twelve floors later, Chuck had to appease the elderly couple with a month's free rent and limo service for them and the mangy dog.

The couple flew out of the elevator, and Richie, sad about losing his new toy, yelled for the dog.

"No dogs. For you. Ever," Blair snapped as she carried the baby out into the lobby.

Behind her, Chuck lugged all of the items for their little excursion. Arthur quickly came to help Chuck when he saw him pushing the stroller with the baby bags and the umbrella.

"Where to, sir?" He asked, eying the child in Blair's arms. Richie was now fascinated with the bustling people around him.

"A kid park," Chuck commanded, helping Blair into the limo.

Arthur stared at the closed door for a moment and thought that this was, by far, the oddest thing he'd ever had to do for Charles Bass. And he'd seen it all.

------

To be continued


	8. Chapter 8

**Title: ****Bringing Up Baby**

Author: Isabelle

Rating: PG

Disclaimer: I do not own Gossip Girl and Chuck Bass is not locked in my closet. But Blair might be ;)

Spoilers: Post 2.16. After avoiding one another, Chuck and Blair arrive at the Van der Bass home to find a small child left for the Bass family. This follows the first 48 hrs of C and B adjusting to having a small child to care for and realizing they're anything but over one another.

A/N –A special thank you to Tati, my always faithful beta *kiss*

---------

**(Chapter 8)**

_Saturday, 11am_

Both pairs of brown eyes peeked out the limo window and into the park before them. They blinked and studied it carefully.

"Looks dangerous," Blair admitted.

Chuck's brows furrowed. "Too many kids. How are we to distinguish our kid from the others?"

"That is a problem. Amongst a lot of them," she agreed. "Clear exposure. We'd be walking targets."

"I told you we should've stayed at the apartment," he snapped.

"You were the one who said he was becoming a menace and we needed to get him out of there," she reminded him.

They both turned to Richie, who was staring at them with wide-eyed curiosity. Chuck's scarf was still tightly held in one small fist and his favorite train in the other.

"We can handle this. If anyone asks, we're babysitting. Which is what we _technically_ are doing," Blair reasoned. She leaned forward and unsnapped the seat belt, picking the baby up so he could look out the window.

The moment the baby saw the park, his eyes widened and he let out a yell. The train was forgotten as his little finger pointed to the park.

"Si!" He cried, his little legs bouncing on Blair's lap as she threw Chuck a look.

"Fine. But if we accidentally take the wrong kid home, I'm blaming it on you," he decided.

Arthur helped them take out all the items from the limo, and a few parents turned their heads when they saw the little spectacle: Blair and Chuck all dressed up for a day at the park, the little boy in a bowtie, Chanel bag, rare and luxurious stroller, a limo, and a manservant helping them.

Chuck cleared his throat. "Let's stroll him around for a while."

Blair blinked, shifting uncomfortably. She wasn't sure she was properly dressed for this occasion. "Yes. Let's."

That started the mess. Richie did not want to be confined to the stroller, no matter how lovely it was, when the sand was a mere few feet away. He screamed, losing his pacifier and yanking Chuck's hair as they tried to maneuver him into the stroller. When he was finally strapped in, he continued sobbing, his eyes zooming in on the other kids playing on the swings.

Blair took a break, pushed her hair from her face, and tried to compose herself. By now, nearly all parents and some kids were staring at them.

"Let's walk away from here," she murmured to Chuck, who couldn't agree more. They tried to push the stroller, but it wouldn't bulge.

"It must have the brakes on," he said, and she tapped her foot impatiently as he bent down to attempt to see where the heck the brakes were.

Some jerks were blatantly laughing at them.

This park was entirely too yuppie.

"Chuck," Blair hissed at Chuck as he tried to take the brake off the stroller. Richie was still sobbing and crying for Blair.

"I'm trying to –"

"Everyone is looking," she said between clenched teeth.

Richie wailed and began to devise an escape plan.

"Why don't you get down here and look –"

"The baby!"

"Get him!"

Blair reached forward and grabbed Richie before he stumbled out of the stroller face-first. She let out a breath just as Chuck found the hidden brakes.

"Got it!" He said, proud of himself. Blair rocked Richie, though the baby's outstretched hands begged to be taken to the swings. They both maneuvered Richie back into the stroller, ignoring the laughs some parents threw their way, and started their little stroll through the park.

Richie whined pitifully once the swings were out of sight and kept throwing desperate looks at Chuck and Blair, using his large watery eyes as weapons of mass destruction.

"Later," Blair assured him, but the baby didn't understand and thought for sure he would never be allowed to play in the sand with the other kids.

It was a lovely day, a bit chilly, but not so much as to make it impossible to enjoy. Blair reached out and buttoned up Richie's corduroy jacket and placed a little hat on his head that matched his bowtie. The baby was not amused, yanking the hat off and throwing it on the floor.

"Nudist," Chuck threw in under his breath as Blair huffed, picking up the Polo hat from the floor.

Finally, they found a small spot with a small sandbox and a swing set. Only a couple of parents were there, and two of them seemed to be leaving. Richie instantly spotted the swings and began whining once more.

"Ok, fine," Blair conceded and, with Chuck's help, got him out of the stroller. They parked the stroller by an empty bench, and Chuck picked Richie up and walked him over to the swing set.

Blair paused before the swing set, her nose turned in disgust. She went back to the bag and extracted some portable Lysol wipes and a glove. The few parents around paused and stared at her. Chuck watched her with an amused expression. She promptly cleaned it, including the chain, to ensure none of the yuppie cooties got on her.

"Happy?" Chuck asked, smirk still in place.

"Very," she snapped, giving no apologies for her blatant distrust of the swing set.

Richie's little hands bounced happily when Blair sat down on the swing carefully, and Chuck handed her the baby.

"No seat belts," she noticed, so she wrapped her arms tightly around the baby, and Chuck went behind her.

Richie let out a happy squeal when the swing started to move, turning his head and flashing Blair a satisfied smile. She couldn't contain herself, so she kissed him fully on his cheek.

Chuck watched her. She looked relaxed and happy, letting go of her fears and reserves and enjoying herself. He hadn't seen her this way since… Since she'd danced on the stage for him.

It was odd that he was the one who continued to bring this side of her out. Not directly, but always indirectly, watching her just let her hair down and loosen up. Maybe he was the one who always witnessed it, just like she was the one who always witnessed a not-so-published side of him. He gulped and pushed her forward, watching the swing go higher, and the baby let out a lovely squeal of joy.

"He loves it, Chuck!" She cried back towards him. He didn't notice, because these things don't give you warnings, but he was smiling. A full-on smile that most likely had not graced his lips since before he and Nathaniel had their first fall-out over Blair. He felt happy and free and just generally content, despite the circumstances.

With the smile came a laugh and, before he knew it, he was fully enjoying watching Blair and Richie swing out into the air, their laugher mixing in with his.

Blair saw him staring for a moment, as the swing came down and Richie's hair tickled her nose. Staring at them, laughing and smiling. It nearly knocked her out of her swing seat. And then their eyes met, as the swing came down and her hair flowed around her and the wind tossed his brown locks, and their smiles froze on their faces.

It was a magic moment in which the world had suddenly gone completely still, and it was just them. Just them being young, laughing and enjoying life. So very different from what the previous months had brought them, so very special and so worth remembering.

His eyes sparkled as she looked at him, and she knew then and there, without him saying a word, that he loved her. You don't look at someone that way without loving them. Like she was the most precious thing in his life, and he'd finally let down the walls and shown her. No words, no needless words that they always seemed to mess up. Just a look. People often talked about seeing the portal to someone's soul… She'd thought it to be a myth. However, as the man she loved stared back at her, she knew. She just _knew_ she was glimpsing his soul. The soul he carried inside and never let anyone see. It was soft and gentle, romantic and hopeful, telling tales of a young boy who just wanted to be loved.

When Richie got tired of the swing, Chuck watched as Blair slowed down. The baby looked flushed and happy, and he quickly took him from Blair's arms. Richie once more latched on to Chuck and, without warning, showered him with a wet kiss.

Blair jumped off the swing and smiled brightly at him. Something was wrong with the muscles in his face because the smile was still plastered on it, and he beamed back at her.

"You look like you had fun," he commented, and reached out to push a long lock out of her face.

She nodded, still staring at him. "Yeah…"

Richie wriggled out of Chuck's arms and onto the sandy floor. He happily ran, kicking up sand with his feet as he made it to the small slide.

"Grab him as he comes down," Chuck told Blair over his shoulder as he easily caught up with the baby, who was having trouble getting his little leg up the big-boy stairs. Blair watched as Chuck lifted him up and crouched down to fit inside the small opening for the slide.

Blair could hear Richie laughing as Chuck put him on top of the slide, his little legs out before him and an ecstatic expression on his face when he saw Blair at the bottom.

"Ok, I've got him!" She called to Chuck, who let the baby go down the slide, his little feet in the air as he squealed happily. Blair caught him under his arms and swung him up in the air, and Richie let out a delightful laugh.

"Ma!" He demanded.

"Ok, ok, again." Blair was enjoying herself more than she cared to admit as she took the baby back to Chuck, who pulled him up the stairs and, for a moment, their fingers brushed together as she handed him the baby. Their eyes met and a matching smile adorned their faces as the baby insisted on more slide time.

They repeated the slide about five times before she decided the baby needed some juice or water.

They walked to the bench, the baby walking between them, holding each of their hands.

On the bench, Chuck placed the baby on his lap and looked on eagerly as Blair took out a bottle of water from the shiny red Chanel baby bag. She handed the bottle to Chuck, who looked momentarily stupefied and then jolted back to reality when the baby latched onto the nipple and startled suckling. His little hand went over Chuck's, and he stared at him with once more clear and trusting eyes.

"You're getting good at this, Bass," Blair commented, taking out some baby cookies that Hilda had packed for them. Richie instantly spotted them and demanded one, his little hand outstretched towards Blair.

"Mama," he said.

She took one of out of the little container and handed it over. The baby let go of the bottle and started munching happily on the cookie, his little foot once more bouncing contently on Chuck's knee.

"Clear sign that he's satisfied," Chuck commented, and then he did something Blair never expected Chuck Bass, bastard extraordinaire, to do. Never in a million years.

He leaned forward slightly and kissed the top of the baby's head. Blair stared at him, and Chuck, seeing that he had been caught doing something he would normally not do, straightened back up and turned his face. He had looked so wonderful doing it, and it had warmed her so that she, in turn, did something she promised herself she would never do.

She leaned forward and kissed him. A peck, a soft one, but the moment was still heart-pounding as they had sworn all was over between them.

She blamed it on the park. Really. The leaves around them, the spring making the earth glow, the temperature stellar, and a child helping them _play house_.

She pulled back quickly, composing herself and realizing what a fool she was. She had broken it off, pushed him away, and she had every right. He hadn't done anything – aside from being just perfect in the past few hours. But what would happen when those hours were done? What would happen then? Where would they stand?

"Blair," he whispered, and she slowly looked up to his eyes. They burned right through her, making her shiver in the spot.

She swallowed, and then his lips were touching hers once more, his hand burying itself in her loose curls as he pulled her towards him, drinking from her mouth.

She gasped and pulled away, confused and severely turned on.

"We… We shouldn't…" They pulled back and noticed how quiet the baby was being. They both turned to look at Richie, who was chewing on his cookie, crumbs on his bowtie as he stared with wide eyes at their display.

Blair laughed, and Chuck chuckled, ducking his head.

"That's what you do to girls, kid," Chuck said, and Blair playfully swatted him.

"Stop corrupting him!" She hissed.

"Stop kissing me, then," he said, his lips curving into a smile.

"You kissed me back," she defended.

"What did you expect me to do?" He asked, still studying her.

"We shouldn't… It'll just complicate things and –"

And that's when their phones went off. Before Chuck even looked at his, Blair had a thick sensation in her stomach that their peaceful morning of stolen kisses and playing house was about to get interrupted.

-------

_Saturday, 12pm_

_Gossip Girl here, and do I have a scoop! It seems that spring is not the only thing in the air, apparently playing house is the new Guitar Hero - as demonstrated by C & B, who put quite a display at the park with a mystery munchkin. Little munchkins are the new Gucci bag, get yours while they're hot._

Chuck sighed, shoving his phone in his pants pocket and setting Richie down on the floor so he could help Blair pack up.

The moment was definitely lost as Blair's back was rigid and her brow was furrowed. The world had seen them and, on other times, perhaps they would've been fine with it, but now it was different. The world already knew that they weren't anything, hence the world would be extremely curious as to what they were doing being not so very over.

Richie jumped up and down on the sand, and as Chuck bent down to pick up the fallen bottle, the baby unknowingly kicked up sand that sprayed right in Chuck's eyes.

"Just let me look, don't be such a baby!" Blair chided ten minutes later when Chuck had declared that he was now blind and needed to be taken to the hospital.

He had his scarf pressed over his face and continued wincing whenever Blair attempted to yank the scarf from him.

"Just stop touching, it'll rub my cornea off!"

"It'll do no such thing. Oh, my God, you're pathetic!" Blair cried. The baby was now back on the stroller and staring at Chuck with wide eyes as he suckled on a chunk of apple.

"Let me pour water over it to get the sand out – it can't be that much!" Blair insisted.

"It was a whole lot, you didn't see it coming at me," he snapped back.

She sighed very loudly. "Just… Let me look, I can't help you unless you let me look."

"I don't want you to help me. I'll just be blind, thank you," he insisted.

She nearly shook him, she was so frustrated. "Give me!" She yanked on the scarf, and it flew in the air. The baby followed it with his eyes.

"Uh Oh!" He said, little finger once more pointing at it.

"AHHHH!!"

"Stop it, let me see!"

"Don't touch – fuck, Blair, don't touch!"

And before he knew it, he was sprawled on the park bench with his head on her lap.

She unscrewed a bottle of water and looked down at him and his sand-filled eyes. "Keep your hands off."

"Stop it, what are you doing?" He insisted as she swatted his hands off his face.

"I'm washing it off, you're making a bigger deal of this than it needs to be –"

"You're not the one with the burning eyes," he growled back.

"Stop," she said, using her stern voice.

Richie watched, still munching on his apple.

And then she was pouring cool water on his face, and he relaxed because it was actually helping.

"Blink," she murmured, and he slowly did, wincing as the water washed off the remnants of the sand inside. "There," she said softly.

He blinked, his eyes still red and puffy. "I still have some in there," he grumbled.

"Ok, I still have some water left," she said and poured it carefully over his left eye. "Better?" She asked, attempting to hide the smirk that was coming over her face.

"Better," he said and slowly sat up. His entire sweater was soaked and so were her pants. Some parents were staring at them, and he sighed. They so weren't cut out for this.

"Let's go home," he finally suggested.

She nodded, and he walked next to her as she pushed Richie around the park. The climbed back into the limo, ignoring the looks they got from the other parents.

"We have to find another park," he said.

"One without sand," she said wisely.

"And less yuppies."

"Agreed."

When they arrived back at the apartment, they were greeted by a very confused and clearly perturbed Eric.

"You have a kid?" He asked.

"Yes, they're the new Gucci," Blair quipped as she hoisted Richie up on her hip.

Eric studied the baby, and Richie looked right back at him, suckling his pacifier.

"He's kind of cute," Eric admitted.

"Babies usually are," Chuck said, and Eric studied his brother.

"What happened to you?" He asked, astonished at seeing Chuck with messy hair, wet sweater, sand everywhere, and lugging… anything.

"Rich Bass over there decided to attack me," Chuck snapped.

Eric looked at the baby, who seemed innocent enough. "He's just a baby."

Blair made a derisive sound under her breath. "We have been attacked every which way."

"I still don't understand how you have a baby," Eric said.

"You'll have to ask Lily," Chuck replied, dumping all the bags in a couch and throwing himself on it. Blair set Richie down, and the baby made a beeline for Chuck's unmoving form. He suckled on his pacifier and stared down at his stoic head.

"Dada!" He said to Chuck.

The entire room froze, and Blair, Eric and Chuck all turned to the baby. Richie dropped his pacifier and joined Chuck on the couch, repeating 'dada'.

"So… I guess you're keeping him," Eric said, looking over the scandalized Chuck.

-------

To be continued


	9. Chapter 9

**Title: ****Bringing Up Baby**

Author: Isabelle

Rating: PG

Disclaimer: I do not own Gossip Girl and Chuck Bass is not locked in my closet. But Blair might be ;)

Spoilers: Post 2.16. After avoiding one another, Chuck and Blair arrive at the Van der Bass home to find a small child left for the Bass family. This follows the first 48 hrs of C and B adjusting to having a small child to care for and realizing they're anything but over one another.

A/N –A special thank you to Tati, my always faithful beta *kiss*

---------

**(Chapter 9)**

_Saturday, 1pm_

"Don't be dense, Eric. Of course we're not keeping him," Chuck said, yet Richie was nicely snuggled into his side, his little feet happily swinging as he watched the cartoons before him.

Eric looked doubtfully at the scene before him. His stepbrother was great in a jam, or when one voluntarily (or not-so-voluntarily) wanted to be corrupted. But hugging? Being emotional? That was just not him.

"Ok…" he said, still doubting the words that came out of Chuck's mouth. Chuck had been unnaturally quiet after the baby had called him 'dada,' but Blair walked around them with a knowing smirk on her face as she went about planning the rest of the day.

"Dinner will be at 6pm," she went on, list in hand. "Bath right after, as we've seen the conditions of that particular activity."

"A mess," Chuck interjected.

"Total," Blair nodded.

Eric blinked, unsure if he was stuck in some weird sitcom. Or maybe there was a camera. A hidden camera!

"Then, if we can have him in bed by 7pm or 7:30ish, we should be set," she concluded.

"Bed by 7?" Chuck shook his head. "Makes no sense, Blair – he'll be back up and bouncing by 2am."

Eric looked at the baby, who looked to be slowly nodding off, drooling on Chuck's unsuspecting sleeve.

"Not if we tire him out," she suggested.

"And what exactly do you propose we do? Make him run in circles for a few hours?"

"He'll get sick; we'll have to try another way of getting him to be that tired," she countered.

"I could order a trampoline," Chuck suggested, and Blair lit up. Eric blanched when their eyes _sparkled_ at one another. Something, or a lot of somethings, was going on.

"Oh!" Blair said, beaming. "He'd like that."

"He's a baby!" Eric put in. "You can't put a baby on a trampoline. He's liable to kill himself."

They both turned to stare at Eric.

"Weren't you with Cece all weekend?" Chuck asked.

"Have you met my grandmother?" Eric asked.

"Touché."

"Babies do things like play with large boxes." The other two blinked at him. "And chew on things."

"Why would they want to play with large boxes?" Blair asked, clearly confused. She didn't see anything interesting in a large, empty box.

Eric shrugged. "I don't know. Did you all ever play with the big boxes?"

"No," Chuck responded. "I had…"

And Blair instantly turned to stare at him. He cleared his throat.

"What _did_ you have?" Blair asked, a smirk slowly forming as she walked around the couch.

"Lego's."

Eric smirked, and Blair followed suit.

"You wanted to build buildings, too?" Blair asked in a near coquettish manner, which made Eric's back go rigid.

Chuck looked away, and that was when Richie's head plopped on his lap. The baby was out cold.

"I have a feeling you won't need the trampoline," Eric commented.

"Well, we can't let him nap," Blair snapped. "It's not on the schedule."

"Screw the schedule, Blair. The kid is tired," Chuck replied, unsure now where to put his hands and at a complete loss.

"He's hardly done anything!" Blair cried. "Maybe he's sick. Maybe we should take him to the doctor."

"Because he's napping?" Chuck cried incredulously.

"Because I'm worried!" Blair cried back, and the baby shifted in Chuck's lap.

"Stop shouting, you're going to wake him!" He shouted.

Eric shook his head. They were out of control.

The baby woke, jolted by Chuck's voice, and instantly started to cry.

"Happy?" Chuck asked Blair, who huffed and instantly picked up the baby, rocking him against her.

Richie continued crying, his little hand fisting a chunk of Blair's hair.

"Well, now he's spooked," Chuck said, not happy.

"Humm… Guys? How long ago did he eat?" They both turned to stare at Eric, who thought that if he hadn't decided to come back home, the poor child would've died.

"Right after we changed his diaper," Blair answered, confused as to where Eric was going with this.

Eric sighed, shaking his head. "Guys… Babies are just like people." Talking to children, he swore. "They get hungry every few hours; they use the bathroom every few hours. He probably has a dirty diaper AND is starving."

Chuck and Blair looked at the unhappy Richie, who was rubbing his eyes and hiccupping.

"Oh, my God. We're going to kill him!" Blair cried.

Richie let out a wail.

Richie had indeed been going on a wet diaper. A very, very, very wet diaper.

"What are you doing?" Eric cried when Chuck lifted Richie off the bed and headed to the bathroom. Richie kicked up his legs and cried more.

Chuck looked at him confused. "To wash him."

"Baby wipe him," Eric said, as if it were the most common thing in the world.

Blair gasped, and her eyes zoomed into the wet wipes used for cleaning drool and sticky hands.

"That is disgusting, Eric!" She cried.

"Oh, my God. What did you think they were there for?" Eric gasped, desperately holding back his laugher.

"To wipe his face and hands," Chuck put in, clearly confused and just as disgusted as Blair.

Eric couldn't hold it in; he started laughing and didn't stop regardless of how harshly the other two glared at him.

"We're kind of new at this, you know," Blair defended. "Plus, cleanliness is key."

"This poor kid, you're liable to kill him before the day is out," Eric said.

Chuck sighed and put Richie back on the bed (which only served to make him scream louder).

"You use the wipes to clean him, you know – down there," Eric explained.

"Even when it's poop?" Blair asked, doubtful of every word coming out of Eric's mouth.

"Yes. You only bathe him once a day, or as needed. Remember. Small person," Eric reiterated.

Chuck grimaced and waited until Blair came to him with the wipes. "Here, you do it. You're a guy."

Chuck eyed her. "I don't think so. You're used to _handling_ these things."

Eric couldn't believe his ears.

"He's a baby! He's asexual!" Blair was appalled.

"There is no such thing as asexual!" Chuck cried.

Richie sobbed.

"You see," Eric snapped finally. "This is why some people need therapy!"

------

_Saturday, 2pm_

"Well, he already had chicken. How about turkey?" Blair suggested. They had given Richie a cookie to calm him down and then sat him down in his brand-new feeding chair, which had taken 2 men and a shouting Chuck to assemble. Eric had decided he couldn't handle them. He called Lily and informed his mother that Chuck and Blair were killing the baby, and she needed to come home as soon as possible. Lily had laughed, even though Eric was quite serious.

So when the boyfriend showed up, Eric quickly disappeared. Chuck didn't like the boyfriend. He'd cheated on Eric, after all, and cheating was just something that (ironically enough) Chuck Bass just didn't approve of. He actually abhorred it.

"He didn't get baby-wiped as a child," he said under his breath when the boyfriend left the room, and Blair had to control her fit of giggles as Eric shot them a dark look and reminded them not to kill the fourteen-month old.

"Are we doing this again?" Chuck demanded.

"He needs a well-balanced meal!" Blair snapped.

Chuck rolled his eyes dramatically and gave Richie another cookie. The baby took it with eager hands after looking at Chuck lovingly, which made him shift and look around uncomfortably.

"Turkey and veggies and potatoes," Blair continued. "And maybe some prunes for desert, what do you think?"

"Blair, no one wants prunes for dessert. Not under the age of fifty, they don't," Chuck said, sitting down and grabbing the emergency baby book. He planned to sue the authors later, seeing as they didn't mention anything about the baby wipes.

"He's a baby, he eats what we tell him," Blair countered.

"Because he doesn't know any better," Chuck pointed out.

"What if he's constipated?" Blair asked, always up for an argument with Chuck.

Chuck smirked, almost sourly. "I've cleaned the mess that comes out of this kid – trust me – I've seen dogs more plugged up than this kid."

"You haven't seen a dog poop in your life, Chuck Bass."

"FEED HIM!"

They both were quiet as Eric shouted from upstairs.

"Fine. No prunes. Bananas, then." Blair bounced off. Richie spotted the jar in her hand, dropped the cookie instantly, and yelled for his new obsession.

"I'm not doing it," Blair crossed her arms and glared at Chuck five minutes later.

"I did it last time," Chuck reminded her.

"You're the man. You do it," Blair snapped.

"It's not like you're even going to get dirty. I got him a fucking chair!" Chuck yelled.

"Can you stop cursing around him? He's liable to be confused with a sailor by the time his father picks him up," she replied.

Richie looked hopelessly between the two of them and, in a fit of rage, angrily threw what was left of his cookie on the floor and let out a high-pitched scream.

"Fine. I'm doing it." He yanked the spoon from her hand, and she smiled triumphantly. "But only because I love –"

The words died on his lips. Her eyes widened, and they stared at one another.

The baby screamed.

Eric marched in angrily and glared at the two.

"Will you two stop it? Anyone would think you just discovered the cure for cancer! This poor baby is starving…" And he looked at Chuck and Blair, and the words died on _his_ lips. "Ok. So I'm going to leave."

Blair's heart hammered. Why didn't he just say it? Say it! Say it! She begged him with her eyes. Chuck was too choked up to say the words as he looked at her hopeful face. If he said it now… If he said it now, he would have to commit. It would be it. The words would be out of the way, the actions would be left.

He would be the boyfriend. He would care for her as she cared for him. He would call her a few times a day. Send her texts when he missed her, kiss no one else, flirt with no one (if he wanted to keep his balls safe from harm), be with no one. Granted, it's not that he _wanted_ that, it's just that… It was the edge of a precipice. And regardless of wanting it with all of his soul, it was still scary as hell.

"I… I'll feed him," he finally finished lamely.

She quickly excused herself to go the bathroom because she needed to make sure she had put on waterproof mascara.

-----

_Saturday, 3pm_

"I don't care what Eric says, he needs a bath. I mean… He's _green_," Blair said airily as they lifted a satisfied Richie from the feeding chair. She hadn't looked him in the eye since he almost spilled the beans, and since then she had been bouncing around like nothing mattered but the baby.

Chuck felt like an ass.

What was it about Blair that always made him feel like an ass? He never felt like an ass before she came in to his life, with her feelings and her brown eyes, and it was just taking over his entire being. He had been a simple man before. He had three best friends and all the women in New York at his disposal. No _feelings_ or emotions or complicated situations.

Yet here they were, over a year later, and the sight of her wide, hurt eyes just gutted him time and time again.

Richie babbled to Blair as she lifted him and walked him towards the bathroom, holding the baby at arm's length from her body. Richie's eyes were glued on Chuck as he babbled, calling him Dada once more. Chuck cursed silently. He wasn't ready to be a father. He wasn't even ready to be a boyfriend, much less a father.

He followed Blair into the bathroom and watched as she placed Richie inside the tub. The baby jumped a bit when Blair turned on the water. Richie let out a scream at the rushing water and clutched at Blair, frightened half to death.

"No!" Blair blanched, her shoulder now stained with green mush.

Chuck came in behind her and picked the kid up out of her grasp.

"It's ruined! This is vintage!" Blair cried, appalled.

"Now you know how I felt," Chuck smirked. Richie peeked between his feet at the rushing water and pointed it out to Chuck. "Tried to drown you, did she?" Richie babbled back at him, his eyes still wide as the tub filled. The tub had already been full the last time they had bathed him.

"I didn't –"

"You haven't even taken off his clothes," Chuck pointed out.

"I was going to wash those, too," Blair admitted.

"No, no," Richie whimpered as Blair pulled his little shoes off.

"Yes, yes," Blair said, yanking his little pants down his chubby legs.

"He's going to cry," Chuck warned her.

"He'll be fine," Blair said and grabbed the baby by his waist as Chuck unhooked the small, stained bowtie.

Richie started to cry.

"I don't think he likes baths anymore," Chuck murmured as he pulled the shirt off the baby.

"I think he's cranky. He hasn't slept well and the book said –"

"Screw the book. It's misinforming us," Chuck snapped.

"It's not!" Blair countered, and Chuck took the baby's diapers off. He scrunched up his nose. They were soggy and wet.

"Jeez…" he murmured and then turned to shut the water off. Richie calmed down, his little index finger poking at his upper lip in wonderment.

"Better?" Blair asked Richie as she lowered him into the water. Richie sat on the tub and stared at them, the warm water reaching to his waist.

"Shouldn't we get him, like, a rubber duck or something?" Chuck asked doubtfully as they stared down at the baby.

"Or bubbles. Baths are never fun without bubbles," Blair said and quickly walked out, heading to Serena's bathroom. While she was gone, Richie tried to get out of the tub three times, soaking Chuck to the skin as he threw a little tantrum.

"I left you for less than a minute with him!" She snapped at Chuck as she poured some Dior body wash into the water.

"It was an eventful minute," he agreed. Richie looked as innocent as they came, but the evidence was in the wet, baby-shaped handprints on Chuck's sweater.

"Ok," Blair said and dipped her hand in the water, shaking it up a bit and creating some pathetic bubbles. But they were bubbles, and Richie's eyes went wide as he happily smiled and played with them for a bit.

Once he was washed and cleaned, Chuck wrapped him in a towel, making him look like a stuffed sausage. The boy's hair was plastered to his face and his feet peeked out from the bottom.

"Let him nap a bit, Blair – screw the schedule," Chuck begged as Blair towel-dried the baby.

After Chuck fetched a diaper, Blair looked over her clothing choices as the baby began to jump on Chuck's bed. The bed sported a brand new mattress and, for some reason, this pleased Blair. A fresh mattress for a fresh start. This was good. But not. She disliked him at the moment.

She supposed she could dress the child in the powder blue outfit. Serena would love that. She watched as Chuck got the diaper on Richie without too much protest, and she admitted that the baby looked downright tired.

"Ok, maybe a nap," she said once the baby had on a diaper and was wearing the powder blue shirt.

"Thank you," he said, and they shared a momentary smile. It was quickly wiped off when the baby slithered himself under the covers.

"Mama!" Richie cried, and Blair shook her head.

"Let me change my shirt," she said to Chuck. As she slipped into a cashmere sweater, she looked around the room. She found a small pair of socks. She smiled slightly and took them to the room. When she stepped in, she saw the oddest sight she never expected to encounter.

The great Chuck Bass was knocked out asleep on the bed, and Richie was sprawled nearly on top of him, also asleep. His little thumb stuck in his mouth as Chuck's larger hand held his small back to him.

The warm fuzzies that had been prevalent since she saw him last night, standing hopeless and needy with a crying baby in his hands, fluttered happily. She crawled on the bed slowly and slipped the socks on the baby's cold feet. The baby murmured in his sleep and, when she looked up, she saw Chuck's sleepy eyes blinking at her. She pulled a blanket over them and slipped in next to them. Chuck shifted until his head was nearly resting on her chest.

She brushed his hair back and he sighed, dead to the world.

"I love you, Charles Bass."

And she decided that she was sleepy too and could totally do with a nap herself.

Later, as Eric padded upstairs to check on the overly quiet trio, he spotted them all asleep like a little family on Chuck's bed. He shook his head and walked out, turning off the light and yanking at his tie. He slipped it over the door handle and smirked, walking away.

------

To be continued


	10. Chapter 10

**Title: ****Bringing Up Baby**

Author: Isabelle

Rating: PG

Disclaimer: I do not own Gossip Girl and Chuck Bass is not locked in my closet. But Blair might be ;)

Spoilers: Post 2.16. After avoiding one another, Chuck and Blair arrive at the Van der Bass home to find a small child left for the Bass family. This follows the first 48 hrs of C and B adjusting to having a small child to care for and realizing they're anything but over one another.

A/N –A special thank you to Tati, my always faithful beta *kiss*

---------

**(Chapter 10)**

_Saturday, 5pm_

It was the sound of Chuck's buzzing phone that woke them. He rolled over and shifted the baby so that he was snuggled to Blair's side, then grabbed the call.

"Hello?" He asked in a muffled and tired voice.

Richie whimpered and burrowed closer to Blair as she pulled the sheet over them, keeping them warm.

"Hold on," Chuck stood slowly from the bed, and Blair blinked lazily at him.

"Chuck?" She asked, slightly out of it.

"It's Mike. Let me take this," he said, and she watched as he padded out of the room.

She tried to go back to sleep but she was acutely aware that he was no longer beside her, so she lay there, unconsciously making circles on the baby's warm body. She began to have a sudden fear. A fear that his father would be just perfect and would miss his little boy; would be ecstatic to have him back, and they would have to give the baby back. Suddenly, she didn't want to be babysitting anymore.

Those were the thoughts and feelings that Chuck brought out in her, she was sure. Yet as the little warm body next to her sighed and shifted, she realized that Blair Waldorf wanted a family. She wanted to create her own family, be an attentive mother, school her daughter in proper society manners, encourage gentlemanly behavior in her son, have a loving husband whose ties she would pick and match with her headbands.

She was in the midst of the perfect fantasy when Chuck reentered the room and slowly slid back into bed. His feet were bare and cold and bumped slightly against hers, making her shiver.

He was silent, and Blair could see his jaw working on the semi-darkness. She didn't know what to say or do, so she rubbed her foot against his in encouragement. He shifted and turned to look at her, giving her a slight smile.

"Mike checked out the dad…" He was quiet again.

"Good guy?" Blair guessed, though she hardly wanted to believe the words herself.

Chuck blinked and nodded slightly.

Blair held the baby tighter against her form. "How do we know for sure?"

"Mike's the best there is. Guy's clean. Works overtime at a factory out in Pittsburgh to put food on the table, has three other kids…" Chuck gulped. "Normal guy."

In her mind, she thought that they could take better care of the baby. Give him all he ever wanted, send him to the best schools, have him travel the world, dine with Vanderbilts. One day he'd be grateful that they took him in and didn't leave him to grow up in the slums of Pittsburg.

"But…"

"We can't keep him, Blair," he cut her off.

She closed her mouth and willed herself to be ok with it, but she wasn't. She was most especially not happy with the fact that he had said 'we,' because last time she checked, there was no 'we'.

"He's flying in tomorrow. We'll have the baby ready."

Blair sat up slowly, waking Richie up, blinking up at them. Blair quickly went to the bathroom and shut the door firmly behind her in case Chuck got any ideas about coming after her. She stared at her reflection in the mirror and decided the only way around this was to dab her face with a cold washcloth.

Chuck stared at the closed door for a moment, but his attention soon focused on Richie pulling slightly on his sleeve and, without preamble, climbing on his lap. Chuck picked the baby up without hesitation this time, maybe because no one was looking at him, held the baby closer and rocked him slightly. His father, to his knowledge, had never done it, but now he wished he had. Of course that was how Blair caught him: holding the baby.

She stared at him and walked slowly towards him. His eyes studied her in the semi-darkness as she bent down and slowly placed a kiss on his forehead. Chuck closed his eyes and inhaled her scent. She was so amazingly perfect.

"C'mon… I'm hungry," she said softly. Richie blinked sleepily at her, watching her from Chuck's arms. "You're daddy is coming soon, baby. Isn't that good?"

Chuck watched as she put on her brave-Blair face.

This peaked Richie's excitement as he sat up and rubbed his eyes. "Daddy?"

Chuck and Blair shared a knowing look and then walked on to the dining room. Of course, they found Serena and Dan in one of their 'we're so angsty' conversations that seemed to overwhelm their teen relationship.

Dan looked over at Chuck, who carried Richie as the baby laid his head on Chuck's shoulder, sucking his thumb.

"Oh, you're awake!" Serena stood, coming around the table.

"Is that a baby?" Dan asked, clearly confused and now concerned about the well being of the child.

"Yes, don't they have those in Brooklyn?" Blair snapped, and Chuck smirked.

"We've been known to procreate, yes," Dan said, stuffing his hands in his pockets.

"Like roaches," Chuck muttered under his breath, making Blair hide a smile and Serena glare at them.

"Hilda left us dinner. She went home saying she was dead tired," Serena explained looking over at Richie who peeked back at her.

"Oh, good. I'm starving," Blair replied and walked around Dan as if he didn't exist.

"Who in their right mind left you two in charge of a baby?" Dan demanded.

"Shhh," Richie told Dan, who looked downright baffled.

Chuck's smirk widened as he hefted Richie higher. "You heard the kid."

Dan blinked at Serena. "Where did they get a kid?"

"Someone dropped him off in a basket," she said airily.

"A-are you serious?" He asked, flabbergasted.

"Yeah, then he peed on my bed," Serena sighed.

Dan blanched at her. "W-what? We were _just_ there!"

"Oh, it's fine – Hilda changed the sheets."

Dan looked thoroughly disgusted with life.

Serena let out a laugh, remembering the earlier morning. "And then I thought Nate had peed on the bed."

Dan gaped at her. "What? Why was Nate in your bed?"

"Oh, we slept together last night."

----

Chuck sat the baby on the counter in the kitchen and watched as Blair pulled back the foil paper on the casserole dish on the stove.

"Lasagna!" She cried delightedly.

Chuck's mouth watered. Hilda made the very best lasagna, there was no denying it.

"She's too good to us," he murmured, and Richie, smelling the food, craned his little neck to look over Blair's shoulder. He whined at Chuck, pointing to the food.

"Blair, I think he wants some, too," he commented.

Blair glanced at Richie, who was looking hopefully at the lasagna with wide hazel eyes and mussed hair.

"No, baby – you can't. You have your own food."

Richie whined louder when Blair began to serve herself and Chuck in large white plates. Chuck stuffed the pacifier back into his mouth, and Richie promptly pulled it out and handed it back to him, filled with drool. Chuck grimaced and set it on the counter.

"No, no," Richie told him.

"He wants food," Chuck said.

"He's had food."

"He's hungry again."

"Let's eat first, ok? I'm starved," she gave in, and Chuck winked at the baby, though the baby didn't know why.

Once they were sitting on the table with the baby on Chuck's lap, the baby started crying immediately when he was denied 'big-boy' food.

"Just a little, Blair – c'mon. I'm deaf in this ear already –"

"Fine. If he chokes, I'm blaming it on you," she snapped. She scooted her chair closer and, mashed some of the lasagna on the side of her plate, scooping it up with a spoon. Richie watched with wide, happy eyes as the spoon came his way. He quickly opened his mouth and savored the food, making contented noises.

Richie turned after this third bite and gave Chuck a happy smile. "She caved, did she?"

"Stop talking to him as if I'm not here," Blair snapped.

"It's called male-bonding," Chuck explained.

"I can bond, too," Blair protested. "And how come I'm the bad guy?"

"You're not the bad guy," Chuck said, wiping Richie's face free of red sauce as the baby munched on his new favorite food. "It's just a guy thing."

She rolled her eyes and took a bite of her food when Serena stormed in.

"We broke up," Serena announced as she made it to the kitchen, scooping a huge chunk of lasagna and plopping it on a plate.

"Uh oh!" Richie said, watching her.

Chuck and Blair exchanged looks. "Is it serious this time?" Blair asked tentatively.

"I mean, Nate and I have nothing – nothing – going on!" Serena fumed, and Chuck smirked, leaning back as Richie eyed what was left on his little plate compared to Blair's. He sensed unfairness.

"Where did this come from?" Blair asked, confused.

"Because of last night," Serena blew her hair out of her face as she sat down, popping a diet coke open. Richie's eyes zoomed in on Serena's plate and once more compared it to his.

"What _exactly_ happened last night?" Chuck asked.

"Nothing – we were just having fun. He's having a bit of a problem with Vanessa, and I, wanting to be a _good_ friend, said we should hang –"

"And you're such a _good_ friend," Chuck's smirk widened. Cheshire-like.

Serena glared at him. "You would give your left ball for me to break up for good with Dan, wouldn't you?"

Chuck blanched slightly. "Let's not be hasty."

-------

_Saturday, 6pm_

"How do you know he'd like this?" Blair asked, setting Richie down next to Chuck as he sat before the piano.

"All well-raised gentlemen know how to play the piano."

"He's one. He'll bang on the piano, and you'll have to get it tuned again," she informed him.

"So?" Chuck asked casually and picked up the baby, setting him on his lap. Blair slid in next to him and pressed some of the keys. When they were younger, they would play together while Serena and Nate danced around and complained about their taste in music.

He smiled at her slightly, those rare smiles he threw out when he didn't notice, as they began to play the piano in sync.

"Remember that time when we put a mini-concert on for Bart and your parents?" He asked her. Blair remembered both Eleanor and Bart had stood up during their performance to answer their phone, but still congratulated them on their skills. They were eight at the time. She wore a huge pink bow on her hair, and he matched her with a white and pink polka-dot bowtie.

"Yes, we were wonderful," she nodded, keeping up with his swift hands as Richie watched the keys and listened to their noise.

"It's going to be different, you know," he said quietly, his eyes on the keys as she watched his profile.

"What is?" She asked quietly, her eyes not even on her hands, simply remembering their flow.

"When we have our kids…"

Her throat went dry. Her eyes went wide and they locked on his. He looked just as stunned as she felt. She couldn't speak even if she wanted to. She was still so emotionally sore from their last meeting that tears, unbidden, came to her eyes.

"Blair –"

She didn't let him ruin the moment, and instead captured his lips in hers, sinking her hands into his hair. He eagerly responded, his own tongue quickly finding a home inside her mouth, moaning into her.

They pulled back momentarily, their foreheads pressed against each other as they panted.

"You taste like pasta," he murmured, still hazy and buzzing from the feeling of finally kissing her again. Since their kiss in the park, he had been craving her the way he did when he had first had her. Craving her like he needed air.

"No," Richie protested, staring up at them, indignant at having no attention paid to him at all.

"I want you now, Bass." And those were the only words he needed to hear. Quickly he stood up, taking Richie with him and stalked back to Serena's room. His step sister blinked at him, confused, as he entered with the baby and plopped it down on her bed.

"Watch him," he said tersely.

"What? No!" Serena cried as he opened his mouth to cry out at being dumped on the bed unceremoniously.

"Please!" Chuck pleaded, shifting, and Serena's eyes widened when she saw the erection he was trying to hide.

"Oh no," she mumbled, covering her eyes. "I didn't see that. I just didn't. It was an optical illusion."

"C'mon! It's been a while –"

"Get out! I can't look at you – this is just gross!"

"Thank you, I owe you."

"LEAVE!"

Richie wailed, Chuck sped out, nearly tripping on the stack of magazines on the floor.

He hadn't even made it to the middle of the living room before Blair was already on him, fiery little thing that she was.

His small hands dug into his hair, yanking it gently but full of fire and need.

"Chuck…"

"Fuck, Blair." And his hands were on her ass, lifting her up. She yelped, surprised but content, as she moaned against his mouth and pushed him back, stumbling back into his bedroom.

Before he knew it, they were on his bed, which smelled like a baby but he didn't care, all he cared was that Blair Waldorf was once more on top of him, grinding her hips against him and arousing him more than any woman ever had.

"Smells like Richie," she murmured as his lips attached themselves to her neck.

"Don't think about the kid," he pleaded.

"Who did you leave him with?" She breathed.

"Serena." He latched on to her ear. She squirmed and moaned against him, grasping his hair even tighter.

"Who?" She said distractedly as his hand found itself under her blouse.

"Serena. Stop talking," he begged.

"She doesn't know anything about babies!" Blair pulled back indignantly.

He lay on the bed, looking at the ceiling and wondering if all of his previous evil deeds were being paid back at this moment.

"Neither did _we,_ and _we_ didn't have much trouble."

"We're smart," she pointed out.

He pondered this, and she peered down at him, his brows slightly furrowed. He looked downright handsome.

"You're right, she's liable to kill him," he agreed, and they both scrambled off the bed, fixing their clothing as they made their way to the door. Before they reached it, Blair turned around and grabbed his face, grinding her pelvis against and kissing him fiercely.

She pulled back, and they were both panting and staring at one another.

"I love you," he murmured, and she froze – feeling like she couldn't breathe.

There. He'd said it. Not as a mistake, but because that was honestly how he felt at that moment. Seeing her hair disheveled, her lips swollen, her eyes glazed, her perfect little body fitting so very well against him – that is how he felt.

"I'm sorry it's taken me so long to say it –" he began, still confused as to what this meant for them. Where did this place them? How should they act? He didn't know – he was lost completely.

And she was kissing him again. Forget the baby. Serena would just have to handle it. Let her call Eric or Nate for assistance. _They_ _needed_ _this_. Badly. They hadn't had sex in over a year. You can only be away from someone you love for that long before you just burst.

------

_Saturday, 7pm_

She shifted in the bed and sighed contently, running the palm of her hand over the hairs on his chest.

"It's been 24 hours," she said softly, and she shivered slightly as he traced her spine with his fingers.

"Hmm?" He asked, still too satisfied to have any sort of thought, especially when her warm body was molded against his, her legs tangled in his. He couldn't believe this was what he had been so very deathly afraid of. This feeling of complete and utter contentment. Knowing that someone out there loved you more than any other person and the feeling was returned. He'd been a fool. Any person in their right mind should never run away from this. This was perfection. If the choice were his, he wouldn't move for a month. Just lay there contentedly.

"Twenty-four hours since I got on that elevator." She was looking at the clock on his nightstand.

He shifted slightly to look at the direction she indicated.

"Has it?" He murmured.

She nodded in the crook of his arm, snuggled into the warmth, and blew out.

His hand lazily rubbed her scalp, making her tighten her arm around his chest. "Let's take it slow this time. Do it right," she asked of him.

He smiled and looking down at her. She was staring at him with amusement. He reached forward and kissed her, gently sucking on her lower lip. She really did have fabulous lips, well-formed and slightly pouty.

"I like this idea. Whoever came up with this idea is a genius," he said, and she laughed gently, pressing her forehead to his.

A harsh knock interrupted their lovely reunion and his eyes narrowed at the door.

"I know you two are done, I can't handle him anymore!"

Serena. And a crying Richie.

Blair sighed and slowly extracted herself from Chuck's reluctant arms. "Let her suffer a bit longer," he pleaded.

She turned and threw him a smile. "You're so very bad to your poor sister."

"She owes me," he defended.

"I know." And she pecked him again.

"I can hear the smacking!" Serena bellowed from the other side of the door.

Blair chuckled and grabbed Chuck's discarded shirt, throwing it over her frame and walking towards the door.

"You look fucking hot with my clothes on. Have I told you?" He asked as he lounged on the bed. He wasn't moving an inch. The sheet barely covered his bare hipbone, his arm pillowing his head. She glanced back at him and scowled.

"Put something on!" She hissed.

"No, that kid's too young to give a damn."

"Serena's here!" She snapped.

"She's welcomed to join us," he smirked.

She glared even harder and yanked the door opened to reveal a disheveled Serena, holding the sobbing Richie away from her body. When the baby spotted Blair, he instantly let out a loud wail.

"Mama!" He cried, lurching for her.

Serena huffed, and Blair picked up the baby, rocking him against her as his cries subsided.

"What did you do to him?" Blair asked worriedly.

"Oh, you mean aside from attempting to cover his ears, so he didn't hear you two moaning and crying out each other's names?" Serena snapped, her hair frazzled and decomposed.

"We weren't that loud!" Blair defended, very scandalized. They hadn't been loud.

"Don't be offended, sis. I know the most you've screamed in bed is when Humphrey accidentally used the wrong hole," Chuck smirked as he lay in bed, enjoying his sister's frazzled nerves.

"Chuck!" Blair chided, and Serena screamed, covering her ears. Richie giggled.

"Blair Cornelia Waldorf!"

All three parties froze as out of the elevator stepped Eleanor Waldorf, with Cyrus trailing in behind her.

His mother's eyes zoomed in upstairs, and she swore she never saw her mother's eyes widen as much as they did when they caught her in Chuck's shirt and a baby in hand.

"Yeah, I have to go do something," Serena said, turning sharply towards her room.

---------

To be continued

AN - Apologies first of all because I know this is late. It's been one of those weeks at work when my mental capacity has been used 100%. The good news is that I'm off from work starting Tuesday and I wish to finish this fic before the new episodes begin. So hopefully I will be able to provide you with much more frequent updates :)


	11. Chapter 11

**Title: ****Bringing Up Baby**

Author: Isabelle

Rating: PG

Disclaimer: I do not own Gossip Girl and Chuck Bass is not locked in my closet. But Blair might be ;)

Spoilers: Post 2.16. After avoiding one another, Chuck and Blair arrive at the Van der Bass home to find a small child left for the Bass family. This follows the first 48 hrs of C and B adjusting to having a small child to care for and realizing they're anything but over one another.

A/N –A special thank you to Tati, my always faithful beta *kiss*

---------

**(Chapter 11)**

_Saturday, 8pm_

"Mom!" Blair scampered into the room, giving the baby to a startled and suddenly not-so-cocky Chuck. "Get dressed," she hissed at him. Richie screamed out at being abandoned.

Blair grabbed her pants and tugged them over her legs, nearly tripping over the sheets on the floor. Chuck placed the baby in the middle of the bed and yanked his pants up his legs, but that was as far as they had gotten when Eleanor wrenched the door open.

"Now, dear – really!" Cyrus was saying behind her. They couldn't see him, because her frame covered him entirely.

Eleanor's face was red as a tomato as she glared at the two guilty-looking teens.

"Mom!" Blair peeped.

"Blair," Eleanor said quietly and slowly.

Which meant she was in deep shit. The deepest, deepest kind of shit. The type that gets stuck on the bottom of your shoe and never gets off.

"Charles." Eleanor turned to Chuck, who zipped up his pants with as much dignity as Chuck Bass could muster.

"Mrs. Rose," Chuck nodded.

Eleanor eyed him suspiciously, from his bare chest to the obvious red-tracks on his pale skin from Blair's earlier ministrations. She turned to her daughter and her distorted hair, wearing slacks and a loose shirt that obviously belonged to Chuck.

And in the middle of the bed, a baby was crying. She blanched at the child, who was staring at them with watery eyes.

"Oh! Baby!" Cyrus padded from behind Eleanor and walked to the baby, who stopped and stared at him, baby-talked something, and lifted his arms to be picked up by the short man. Cyrus delightedly picked him up and rocked him. "Isn't he delightful, Eleanor?"

Eleanor's sharp head turned to Blair, who was slowly inching backwards while attempting to cover herself as much as she could.

"Mom, I can explain," Blair started.

"Oh look, he likes me –" Cyrus said.

"Can you explain not answering your phone for the past few hours?" Her mother demanded, and Blair blanched.

"It hasn't rung," Blair replied in confusion. Chuck grabbed the phone from his night table and handed it to her. Nineteen missed calls.

"Oh, it's on silent. We didn't want to wake the baby…" Blair finished off lamely.

Chuck shifted as Blair played with the phone in her hand, and Richie let out a loud laugh when he yanked the little hair that Cyrus had.

"Cyrus, put the baby down, for God's sake!" Eleanor chided, but Cyrus carried on without listening to her. Then Richie spotted Blair once more and reached out for her.

"Mama!"

Blair closed her eyes. This was getting worse by the minute.

"Mama!" Richie whined.

Blair stood her ground, Chuck hid a smirk, and Eleanor looked in dire need of liquor. Cyrus, meanwhile, happily complied with the child and walked it over to Blair.

"He seems to want you, Blair." Cyrus handed Richie over and chuckled, thinking it was the funniest thing in the world. Richie cuddled with Blair, sucking on his thumb and resting his head on her shoulder.

"Scotch?" Chuck offered Eleanor.

"Yes, please." Eleanor nodded.

---------

"And that's when you called and woke us up," Blair finished as Eleanor took her scotch on the rocks like Chuck, who incidentally had thrown a cashmere sweater over his bare chest.

Eleanor threw him a glance and took another swing. Richie had found a new playmate in Cyrus. He was now sitting on the man's lap as the man let him run his little train set all over his shoulders, ears, and head.

"Shoo, shoo!" Richie said to Cyrus and the man laughed delightedly.

"Darling, leave the child be – didn't you hear? We don't know where it came from!" Eleanor chided. "He could be from a perfectly impoverished family!"

"He is," Blair assured.

Eleanor blanched.

"Oh, it doesn't matter, dear – he's positively delightful! Can you imagine when it's our turn to be grandparents?" he asked.

Blair was sure that her mother was wholly against this idea and found it downright scary. The evidence was in her eyes, which were widening larger than usual, and scotch she was gulping down. Chuck, ever so helpful, stood by her and promptly refilled her glass – earning him a thankful look that quickly turned into a scowl when she realized who her savior was. Blair could understand her mother's actions wholeheartedly. Because that was the way her relationship always went with Chuck.

The moment it happens, you're just thankful that someone is saving you, then you realize exactly _who_ is saving you, and that makes you cringe. And yet… at the end of the journey, you embrace the man you didn't expect, and it turns out to be quite a functioning dysfunctional relationship.

This made her smile a bit, because in that moment, she realized her mother would not only one day accept Chuck, but she would downright love him. If she knew there was anything about the bastard she loved was that the he was an excellent manipulator and instigator, both qualities her mother would find endearing and charming in the end.

"That's still a few years in the making," Blair assured her mother as she spoke to Cyrus. She heard Eleanor sigh.

Richie climbed off Cyrus' lap and padded down to where Chuck stood, staring up at him. "Caca."

Chuck sighed, and Eleanor watched the interaction between the two carefully, quite appalled at the child being so very blatant about this condition.

"C'mon," Chuck said, setting down the scotch at arm's length of Eleanor as he picked up the baby, who wrapped his little legs around him and laid his head on Chuck's shoulder.

Blair's heart did that whole melt-in-a-puddle thing it had been doing lately, and she quickly followed Chuck out of the room. Chuck set the baby down on the bed, and Richie jumped on it slightly, giving them a toothy grin.

Blair smiled back at him and grabbed his diaper bag as Chuck grabbed the ever-ready trash bag. They completed the exchange quickly and, with the exception of Blair whining when it was her turn to baby wipe his dirty bum, it went relatively well. Once Richie was in fresh diapers, they dressed him in pants and a little sweater that matched Chuck's. Blair combed his hair to the side as Chuck attempted to tie his shoes. It was hell - the baby kept pulling the shoelaces, and Chuck couldn't hold his hands back and tie at the same time.

Richie thought it was good fun watching Chuck struggle with his fourth attempt at the shoe tying.

"Hold his hands," Chuck demanded of Blair.

"He starts crying when we hold him back," she replied as she finished his hair and kissed his cheek. This distracted Richie for a moment, and even more so when she came back with his pacifier.

"Ma!" He cried out, extending his little hand towards it.

"It's a nasty habit, you know." Blair told him, but he ignored her, stuffing it in his mouth and suckling quickly as Chuck finally finished his shoes.

"There!" Chuck picked him up under his arms and hefted him up. Blair smiled up at Chuck and walked closer.

"You handled her well," she acknowledged, and Chuck looked confused for a moment before he realized she was talking about her mother. He relaxed a bit as Richie studied his ear with earnest interest.

"Well, I can understand she was a bit shocked –"

"Very shocked –" Blair corrected, and Chuck nodded, swatting Richie's probing finger as he stuck it inside Chuck's ear.

"She'll get over it," he nodded.

"She will. And find out what a perfectly perfect person you are," she smirked, coming closer as his eyes darkened.

"Blair!" Eleanor cried from the living room. "How long does it take to change the child's diaper?"

Blair rolled her eyes. "She's very suspicious."

"Can you blame her?" Chuck asked as he set Richie down before he started terrorizing any ears.

"No. I suppose I can't," Blair nodded, taking Richie's hand and walking him out into the living room with Chuck following her.

"Oh, there you are. And the child has clothing. Much better." Eleanor nodded as Richie walked around and discovered Chuck's keys on top of the coffee table.

"Why don't we do dinner, Mr. & Mrs. Rose? I can reserve a table at Virginia Commons," Chuck suggested.

"Oh!" Cyrus cried excitedly. "We have been meaning to go there, haven't we, dear?"

Eleanor studied Chuck. "Yes, and considering it's nearly impossible to acquire a table there, I will be mightily impressed, Charles."

"Then let me impress you, my dear Eleanor," Chuck smarmed.

Blair rolled her eyes at his attempt, but more at her mother's reaction to it. Almost as if she had challenged him because she herself had been unable to get a table.

_15 minutes later_

"Let me change, and we'll get there right on time," Chuck smirked at Eleanor's incredulous face as he retired to his room, leaving Blair, who had now changed into a proper navy dress her mother approved of. Slightly.

"Well, he's just charming, Blair," Cyrus smiled, unfazed by the sudden perfection.

Eleanor, however, eyed her daughter peculiarly. Blair ignored her look by studying her reflection in the hall mirror, making sure her loose bun was decent in light of the bed-head she had been sporting just a few minutes before.

"Isn't he?" She asked distractedly, waiting for her mother to put her twelve cents in.

"Yes." Eleanor walked slowly to her, making sure to avoid the baby, who was attempting to insert the keys inside his train while talking to himself.

Blair turned to her mother and waited. Eleanor took a lipstick out of her purse and handed it over to Blair, still eyeing her.

"Thank you," Blair nodded, unsure of what else to say.

"Be careful," Eleanor said simply as she and Blair shared a look. Blair finally nodded. "Don't get attached to this child, Blair."

Blair glanced at Richie, who was quietly playing by himself, and gulped. It was a bit late for that, but she would take her mother's advice regardless. Blair nodded again.

"Ready?" Chuck interrupted them and the five of them mobilized.

-----

"No, you're doing it wrong."

"How am I doing it wrong, Waldorf?"

"You have to snap it here; you're snapping it there."

"I've always snapped it there, why do I have to change now?"

"Because it's wrong?"

"It's not!"

"It is!"

"Mama!"

"Hold on, baby – your 'dada' insist on being an idiot."

"I got it!"

"No. You broke it."

"Fuck it, we're carrying him."

"Fine."

---------

_Saturday, 9pm_

"Shouldn't this child be in bed or something?" Eleanor asked dubiously as Richie sat on Chuck's lap and munched on a long breadstick.

Chuck looked down at the baby, who was cross-eyed as he studied the bed that refused to break under his steady ministrations. "He's fine." Chuck dusted his little sweater free of the crumbs.

Eleanor raised a brow. "You're quite good with children, aren't you, Charles?"

Blair's head snapped up as she stared at her mother with wide eyes.

Eleanor noticed. "What? It's just an observation – not an _accusation_."

Chuck smirked.

"I think I'll go with the chicken pot pie. There's just something enticing about it, very homey – makes me feel good about life," Cyrus put in, with a brilliant smile on his face.

And Blair saw Chuck smirk from his end, and she wanted to pinch him or something because she knew exactly what he was thinking. When _wasn't_ Cyrus exited about life?

"I'll have the salad… We ate around five, so we're not very hungry," Blair explained to her mother as Chuck gave her a confused look.

"Good choice," Eleanor nodded approvingly.

"But you'll like the salmon and what you don't eat, you can simply take for later," Chuck suggested, not liking that she was changing her food choices just because her mother was there.

Eleanor fixed him with a glare. "Charles," she chuckled. "If she wants the salad, she'll have the salad."

Chuck's nostrils flared. "She _wants_ the salmon."

"I'll have the chicken. End of story. Chicken is good."

"Chicken is excellent. Why don't you have the pot roast, dear?" Cyrus asked, once more brilliantly happy.

Eleanor sent Chuck a withering glare before grudgingly agreeing that she would love the pot roast.

------

_Saturday 10pm_

"That was eventful," Blair whispered to Chuck as they let Eleanor and Cyrus slide into the limo before them. Richie was slowly nodding off to sleep in Blair's arms, bundled tightly in a hat and blanket due to the quickly dropping.

He carried her little take out bag to the car. She'd hardly been able to eat her food, and he hasn't yet decided if it was because of her mother's watchful stare or because she was genuinely not hungry.

"I'll keep it in check," Chuck promised, and she smiled at the softness in his eyes. He could be downright charming when he wanted to.

"You don't have to. It's good for her, I think." She smirked back, and he leaned in and captured her lips in his.

"We're waiting," they heard from the inside. Chuck savored her lower lip for a moment longer and then pulled back.

"Really, I think she likes you." Blair smiled and threw him a wink as he helped her and Richie in.

-----

"I insist that you come home tonight. It's not right for you to stay here," Eleanor complained as they stepped out of the elevator.

"I'm sure they'll be fine, Eleanor," Cyrus said, happily coddling the baby who was now wide awake after his little ten minute power nap in the limo (including extensive drooling on Eleanor's blouse).

"They have no experience raising children, none whatsoever – how will they be fine?" Eleanor demanded.

"Well, neither did we when we first started out," Cyrus reasoned and placed Richie down. The baby instantly went back to his train set.

"Mom, we were fine last night and all of today – really," Blair insisted. "Plus Lily is coming tomorrow and his own father is coming to pick him up."

Eleanor arched a brow at Chuck.

"Yes – plus the upstairs guestroom is available," Chuck assured Eleanor.

Eleanor turned her up the stairs, as if she could inspect the room from her spot in the living room.

"Oh, dear – they'll be fine!"

And just as he was saying it, little Richie discovered a power socket. And seeing that Chuck had stuck his keys in places to open them, he decided to try the same. So he stuck the keys inside the socket.

It pretty much was a disaster as the baby flew across the room in a yell, zooming past the adults, and landed on his butt with his hair on end.

Then let out a loud earth-shattering wail.

-----------

_Saturday, 11pm_

"We've killed him!" Blair wailed as they sat in the waiting room. Chuck had her firmly wrapped in his arms as she sobbed into his sweater. His own face was pale, and he was still shaky, remembering the small little boy in his arms as he rushed him to the hospital.

"This happens all the time, Blair, I assure you!" Cyrus nodded at her shaking back.

"We're going to be horrible parents!" Blair sobbed.

Chuck avoided Eleanor's horrified face.

"Oh, you've talked about children?" Cyrus asked excitedly.

Chuck gulped. "She's hysterical, really – we shouldn't –"

" – liable the just kill them before they turn a month old –"

"I'm sure we won't, I'm sure the baby will be fine," Chuck assured her.

"No, Chuck –" Blair pulled back to look at him. "You don't understand – I knew he was playing with the keys, I think I even gave them to him!"

"You didn't know, Blair. And, really, our place is not child proof," Chuck assured her.

"I'm sure it's our fault – his father will HATE us. We've killed his baby!"

"Mr. Bass?" A male doctor came out of the doors. Chuck shook Blair slightly, and they quickly stood, staring expectantly at the man.

"Well?" Chuck demanded, without noticing he stood taller, in an effort to intimidate the man, almost challenging him to tell them bad news.

"He's fine – sharp as a whistle. Things like this happen to kids all the time. He'll probably be sleepy for a while, but kids bounce back from these things all the time," he explained.

"But his little fingers –" Blair said, mimicking the blackened fingers she had seen on the baby with her own hand.

"Oh, slight burn – like a rash. He'll be fine. I'll get you some ointment," he explained. "Just keep him from sucking on it."

Blair nodded dutifully, rubbing her hands, and Chuck rubbed her shoulders, attempting to calm her and calming his own nerves. He was honestly worried as hell. He also thought they had killed the kid. He'd been a mess when it happened, but he stayed composed because Blair had lost it. She was screaming and crying and rocking the baby, probably scaring him even more. Eleanor had a similar reaction, and Cyrus was no help.

"I got coffee!" Serena came bouncing in with Nate behind her. The two had been called and had met them at the hospital, also slightly concerned for the baby.

"He's fine, S!" Blair cried and hugged her friend fiercely, nearly making the coffee spill before Nate grabbed it and kept them out of the burn unit. Chuck shot him a grateful glance.

"Oh, my God!" Serena hugged her back.

"You can see him now, if you like –" the doctor began and, before anyone could stop Blair or Chuck, they both rushed forward, just like worried parents. They were taken down a corridor and in they went to find a nurse finishing the bandages on Richie's little hand. He had tear tracks in his cheeks and his hair was still full of static, but he was suckling furiously on his pacifier. When he spotted them, he whined loudly, and Blair swiftly sat on the bed and pulled the baby to her. Chuck was right there next to her, and they cocooned the baby between them as Richie sighed happily.

----

To be continued


	12. Chapter 12

**Title: ****Bringing Up Baby**

Author: Isabelle

Rating: PG

Disclaimer: I do not own Gossip Girl and Chuck Bass is not locked in my closet. But Blair might be ;)

Spoilers: Post 2.16. After avoiding one another, Chuck and Blair arrive at the Van der Bass home to find a small child left for the Bass family. This follows the first 48 hrs of C and B adjusting to having a small child to care for and realizing they're anything but over one another.

A/N –A special thank you to Tati, my always faithful beta *kiss*

---------

**(Chapter 12)**

_Sunday,12am_

On the way back to the apartment, Blair sat with the baby bundled on her lap, his little bandaged hand sticking out as he slept soundly on her. Chuck had pulled her tight and close to him, his arm wrapped around her

She leaned her head on his shoulder and played with Richie's smooth hair. They were calm now, but the scare had made them realize quite quickly that they were not ready – in the least – to be responsible for a tiny human being.

On the other side of the limo, Serena and Nate sat staring at them – apparently they had forgotten anyone else was in the car.

"The oddity continues," she murmured to Nate with a slight smile on her face.

Nate, looking as confused as always, nodded.

-----

Back in the apartment, Chuck and Blair retired quickly to his room. The baby had slept soundly through it all. Nate and Serena, having been left standing there, shifted slightly and glanced at one another.

"I have a bottle of merlot and an Adam Sandler movie," she suggested.

He smiled back at her. "Sounds nice."

"But you have to promise not to pee the bed," she laughed, and he joined her.

-----

"Take off his shoes," Blair murmured to Chuck, and he complied as she set the baby down gently on the bed. Richie shifted and sighed, murmuring something. Blair grabbed his pacifier from her purse and placed it against his lips. In his sleep he found it, and his lids fluttered slightly before closing shut once more.

They slowly undressed the baby and managed to slip on one of Chuck's undershirts, which Blair mentioned smelled like him. Once the baby was in his comfortable outfit, Blair walked around the bed and stood behind Chuck.

"Unzip me," she requested, pulling her hair out of the way. He smirked and slowly pulled the zipper down, kissing her exposed skin between her shoulder blades. She shivered but quickly walked away from him and slipped on her chemise as Chuck watched her change with dark eyes.

"Stop staring, Bass. You're not getting any," she snapped, sending a smirk his way.

"I'm just appreciating the curvature of your spine," he amended as she pulled her hair into a bun, giving him a knowing look.

"Are you going to sleep in your suit?" She asked him, stepping out of her shoes.

He stood slowly from the bed, making sure not to wake the baby, and came up behind her, wrapping his arms around her small waist and pulling her flush against his chest. His lips kissed her ear lobe, and he nuzzled the back of her neck.

"Chuck, stop it! The baby!" Blair chided, yet she made no move to get away from Chuck's tight embrace.

"Say that again," he murmured, smirking into her soft skin.

"I can't believe this turns you on!" She hissed, enjoying his undivided attention.

"Oh, yes you can." He inhaled her hair.

"Sadly, yes."

"Mama!" The little voice piped from the bed, and she turned to throw Chuck a glare as she untangled herself from his reluctant arms. Richie was still lying down, but his eyes were glued to their forms as he huddled under all the blankets they had tucked him under.

"Hey, baby," Blair murmured and slipped in next to him, pulling him to her. She looked on at Chuck and raised her brows expectantly. "Change."

He glowered and reluctantly grabbed his pajamas from the drawer and changed into them.

"Those are some nice scars my mother witnessed on your chest," she said, low in the darkened room.

"Yeah, let her know what a wildcat you really are," he snapped back. Blair could only imagine what thoughts her mother must have of her, her behavior, and the results of her behavior.

-----

_Sunday, 7am_

The rustling next to him was what woke him up. Slowly, he blinked to find Blair a foot away, sound asleep and facing him. He smiled gently and realized he could get used to this. Her face free of makeup; waking up next to her each and every morning. He reached out a finger, touching her jaw softly. She moved slightly and slowly blinked at him.

"Morning," he murmured.

More rustling and he realized the little child that had brought them together was missing. He instantly sat up and brought the blanket with him. And there was the baby, laughing at being discovered under the blanket. His little un-bandaged hand grabbed it again and pulled it over his head, laughing as he thought they couldn't see him anymore.

Blair let out a laugh and yanked it away again sending Richie into hysterical laugher, his little legs kick in happiness. Chuck jumped from the bed and pulled the blanket over him and began crawling up the bed under it. Richie let out a delightful laugh and clung to Blair.

"Oh, no! He's going to get us!" Blair cried in feigned distress. Richie ate it up and squealed in joy when Chuck reached out and grabbed his foot, pulling him down.

"Dada!!" Richie cried, laughing, and Chuck, inadvertently laughed as well, enjoyed how easy this child was to please and to entertain.

"Bad daddy!" Blair laughed, 'rescuing' the baby from Chuck's clutches.

The baby stopped and sat up in attention. "Daddy?" He inquired.

Chuck stopped his ministrations, and Blair stared at the baby.

"Daddy?" The baby asked again, staring at Blair as if she had an answer.

Blair threw Chuck a look, slightly concerned over his reaction, considering that this poor baby now thought he had two fathers. And Chuck was one of them.

"He-he'll be here today, don't you worry," she assured the child. The subject was soon forgotten as he grabbed the blanket and threw it over himself, pulling it down again.

"Boooh!!" He cried happily.

They played with him for a bit longer, but the momentum was lost as they realized that time was quickly getting the best of them. Soon, very soon, they were going to have to give this baby back to his father and they would be left alone once more.

"Let me get breakfast from Hilda," Chuck announced as he slid out of the bed, and Blair turned to bathe the baby. He protested loudly, thinking he was adequately clean enough and didn't need a bath. Once he was at least not dirty and in new diapers, Chuck made it back with a large tray.

"Breakfast in bed?" She asked, smiling at him and setting the baby down as he stared at Chuck, the little index finger of his good hand poking into his belly button. He was in nothing but diapers.

"Yummy," Richie murmured as his eyes spotted the eggs.

"Kid eats like a sumo wrestler," Chuck complained, preventing the little hand from grabbing the eggs off the plate. Richie let out an angry scream. "_And_ he's got a temper."

Blair shifted behind Richie, picking him up and pulling him onto her lap. "He's fine, we've just spoiled him." Chuck slid in next to her and handed her a jar of Richie's baby food. The baby eyed the jar and compared it to the fresh scrambled eggs on the plate.

He whined.

"_This_ is your food," she reminded him.

"No, no!" He screamed when she tried to feed it to him.

She sighed and stared at Chuck, who was spreading jelly on his toast.

"Can you blame him? I accidentally tasted that stuff, and I nearly vomited," he said, not even glancing at her. She narrowed her eyes.

"This," Richie murmured, pointing to the eggs.

Blair set the jar of veggie medley on the night table and gave in, spooning some eggs for the baby as he eagerly looked on. They ate quietly, Chuck turned on his TV for some cartoons that kept the baby distracted in-between bites of eggs and oatmeal.

Around the time that Blair began to enjoy her croissant with berries, Eric knocked and entered the room. Looking the worse for the wear, still dressed in a suit with a missing tie, and very rumpled.

"On who side of whose bed did you wake up?" Chuck chuckled, drinking some orange juice.

Eric shook his head, as if he didn't even want to get into it.

"I wanted to check in to make sure the baby was still alive," he mentioned, watching Richie eating a banana with his food hand. Eric spotted the large bandage. "What the hell happened?"

"Oh, he's fine. He just got electrocuted," Chuck mentioned, placing down his juice. "The doctor said he was fine – apparently this type of stuff happens all the time."

Eric blanched. "Elec… doctor? Oh, my God!"

"Si!" Richie protested when Blair took away the rest of his banana.

"He's fine, Eric – really, and Chuck's already had the apartment child-proofed," Blair explained, wiping Richie's face with the cloth napkin despite his insistence on staying dirty.

"How the _hell_ did he get electrocuted?" Eric was scandalized.

"He stuck Chuck's keys in a socket," Blair explained. "But Mom and Cyrus were here, and Nate and Serena came to the emergency room with us, and thank goodness Cyrus had connections there because one of his friends was able to admit him right away."

Eric was staring at the baby as if he were here by some sort of miracle.

"Plus, the kid is strong – he's fine," Chuck defended.

Eric shook his head, still stunned. "I guess everyone had interesting nights at the Van der Bass household."

Blair smiled then frowned. "I wonder what happened to Serena and Nate…"

All three pair of eyes looked at one another.

The three padded down the hall and faced Serena's door. Blair slowly opened and it gasped, Chuck smirked, and Eric blanched.

There on Serena's bed were the two of them asleep together, an empty bottle of wine on the floor, and the TV still on in a blue screen.

Richie, snuggled in Chuck's arms, spotted them and smiled. "Uh oh!!" He cried loudly. The three of them scrambled, pulling the door shut and holding in hysterical laugher as Chuck covered the baby's mouth.

"Shhh!" Chuck said, smiling himself. Richie, thinking it was a joke, laughed loudly.

"Get him away," Eric laughed quietly. "Oh, man – what's going on?"

"It's been an eventful weekend," Blair admitted.

"It must be that odd week when D & S are off, you know?" Chuck murmured, still smirking.

--------

_Sunday, 8am_

Chuck shut his phone and turned to Blair. "Well, Fao Schwartz doesn't open until eleven, so how about a carriage ride through central park?"

Blair's eyes misted, and she eagerly nodded. They dressed the baby in a sharp little suit and discarded the jacket when he refused to wear it. But at least they got the vest on, and he was allowed to be without a bowtie, which made him happier.

As they walked out of the apartment with all of their items, Eric ran into them and let out a small laugh.

"What? We have everything," Chuck defended.

"Oh, no… you're just fine." Eric walked away, chuckling and shaking his head.

Blair realized what was so funny. Richie in his black pants, pink shirt and matching black vest was a near replica of Chuck. She herself was sporting a clean black Audrey-inspired dress with pink flats and a matching purse. They were picture-perfect.

They made it out to the limo, which was waiting diligently for them. Arthur eyed the little group as they piled in and handed their items over to the wise driver. He shook his head, not even knowing where to go with this.

------

"That one looks decent," Blair murmured as they eyed the horses from the limo. They had shaken their head at the previous three. Not pretty enough, Blair had concluded.

"Perfect," Chuck sighed, relieved that this choosing mess was over. He asked Arthur to let them out and, as the three pilled out, the carriage drivers stared on at the perfectly matched little family.

Chuck strutted to the fourth carriage in the line, and Blair trailed behind him with Richie grasping her hand as his wide eyes took in the horses.

"Mama!" He cried, pointing at the horses with his bandaged hand.

"Yes, horses," she repeated, stopping behind Chuck as he addressed the woman driver of their horse of choice.

"You have to go to the first one, we work in rotation," she informed him.

"We don't like the first one," he countered.

"That's the way it is, kid," she replied, shrugging.

Chuck's eyes narrowed.

"How much for the ride?" He demanded.

"It depends –"

"The _full_ package," he clarified, and Blair brushed imaginary lint from her skirt, annoyed at this woman and clearly showing it in her face.

"Hummm…" The woman was confused.

"Nevermind," Chuck grunted and turned to Blair. "I'll be back."

She smiled and nodded, watching as he walked down the line they came from and handed each driver a one hundred dollar bill, informing them that it was time to take a break. Once he returned, the woman was a bit perplexed.

"Now…" he asked, staring her down. "Can we have this one?"

The woman shook her head, amused. "Sure, kid. What are you, a Trump?"

"A Bass," he replied as he helped Blair and the baby into the carriage.

----------

The baby was enchanted by their little adventure. He couldn't take his eyes off the horse as Blair covered her nose politely to defend from the smell. The baby didn't seem to mind, and Chuck reasoned that considering that the child pooped as much as the animal did, they certainly had plenty of things in common. Blair had shoved him because of that comment.

"How long for?" The driver asked over her shoulder.

"Just keep going,' Chuck said airily, waiving his hand. The woman nodded and then shook her head.

"Ma!" Richie was standing on Blair's lap, his little feet bouncing happily on her as he pointed out the balloons a clown was carrying.

"Get him some," Blair insisted. Chuck argued a bit with the incompetent woman driving their carriage before finally getting down and purchasing Richie a huge red balloon, which made the baby go wild with excitement.

"Boba!" He cried when Blair handed him the string.

"Balloon," she emphasized. Richie tried to grab the balloon and was able to hold it in between his short little arms, squeezing it tightly before it slipped from his arms and floated up. Before Chuck or Blair were able to grab the string, the wind carried Richie's balloon away.

-----

"BOBA!!!!"

He was still sobbing.

The damn effing clown had moved on and there were no balloon to purchase. They were stuck with the sobbing kid, an annoyed driver, and one big headache.

"Look at the ducks!" Blair pointed out, hoping to distract him.

"BOBAAAAA!!!!"

"I know, baby – but there is no more Boba. Boba died and is in heaven," Blair tried to explain.

"BOBBBAAAA!"

"I'm one hundred percent sure you're not helping," Chuck murmured.

"Oh, and you are?" She snapped back at him.

"I can't help, my headache has made me incapacitated," he countered.

She kicked his shin angrily, and he let out a howl. "Now you're incapacitated!" She cried.

-----

_Sunday, 9am_

When the carriage ride was finally over and Richie had calmed down, now once more transfixed with the horse and its shiny mane, Chuck let out a silent 'thank God'. He helped Blair down from the carriage and paid the woman well for the ride. As Richie saw that he was being taken away from the horse, the hysterics started again.

"Mio!" He yelled petulantly, pointing to the horse.

"No, the horse belongs here," Blair explained patiently, quickly losing her cool.

"NO!!!"

Walking away from the horse was a bad idea. He nearly threw himself on the floor to begin a world-class tantrum.

"How much for the fucking horse?" Chuck asked the woman. The woman blanched.

"Kit Kat is not for sale!" She was scandalized.

Chuck closed his eyes in disbelief and slowly licked his lips. "You've named the animal _Kit Kat_?"

"He came like that."

The baby cried in Blair's arms.

"How much?"

"Chuck, no – this is ridiculous. We don't have anywhere to place the horse, and they certainly can't take it to Pittsburg," Blair reasoned with him.

"Mio!" Richie tried to reach for the animal.

"He wants it," he replied.

"Of course he wants it, he's a kid – you don't get it for him, though," the driver exploded. Both Chuck and Blair turned slowly to study the woman with disdain.

"Excuse me?" Blair asked slowly.

"You've got to teach him better. Otherwise, he'll be a spoiled brat," the woman retorted, and Chuck's mouth fell open.

"Here…" She stepped down and patted the animal. "Say 'bye bye,'" she told Richie, who stopped crying and then slowly waved his hands and waved goodbye to the animal. "You see…"

"Bah, bye!" Richie said loudly, waiving. Soon his attention went elsewhere, to the birds that flittered around them.

Chuck made sure to give the woman an extra twenty before following Blair to the limo.

"Tips from here and there – we may be ready in a few years," he commented.

"Don't even think about knocking me up, Bass. After this experience, I plan to enjoy my youth as much as possible," she informed him.

---------

To be continued


	13. Chapter 13

**Title: ****Bringing Up Baby**

Author: Isabelle

Rating: PG

Disclaimer: I do not own Gossip Girl and Chuck Bass is not locked in my closet. But Blair might be ;)

Spoilers: Post 2.16. After avoiding one another, Chuck and Blair arrive at the Van der Bass home to find a small child left for the Bass family. This follows the first 48 hrs of C and B adjusting to having a small child to care for and realizing they're anything but over one another.

A/N –A special thank you to Carter for the beta! 

---------

**(Chapter 13)**

_Sunday,10am_

"Bah bye!" Richie said loudly to a random stranger.

He had now taken to saying goodbye to everything and everyone that crossed his path. Strangers found it endearing. Those that weren't New York natives, of course. Chuck and Blair had tried to control him but he had thrown one of his infamous fits when they started and then they quickly decided that it was better to throw apologetic looks to people. But they were Chuck and Blair and their 'apologetic' looks were more like a sneer of disdain.

It worked out well. People didn't question the one year old randomly waving goodbye to them.

"Bah bye!" He was moving now to trash cans.

"Maybe strolling around was not such a good idea," Blair said glancing at Chuck who was pushing the stroller down Fifth Avenue, her own hand holding on to his arm as they rolled, watching the top of Richie's light brown head.

He stuck his little hand out and waved to a passing car. "Bah Bye!"

Chuck sighed, rolling his eyes.

Blair held his forearm for him to stop the stroller. She walked around and picked up Richie out of the stroller, the baby willingly went with her. "Mama, bah bye!" he informed her, pointing at another stranger that passed by them.

Blair looked at Chuck who seemed to be growing more and more annoyed.

"Charles Bass?" Blair's back straightened when she heard the man's deep voice.

Chuck paused and slowly turned to stare at the man behind them. There before them was David Schneiderman, the same man who had caught Chuck with random woman on his father's desk and high as a kite. Chuck blanched and Blair held the baby tighter.

"Mr-Mr Schneiderman." Chuck cleared his throat and quickly stuck out his hand to shake it. The man's wife nearly sneered at Chuck, clearly remembering the state they had all found him in. Schneiderman took in Blair and the baby and the baby carriage between them then slowly shook Chuck's hand, yet eying him dubiously. "Nice to see you, sir. Mrs. Schneiderman."

The woman looked over at Blair and she attempted a smile.

"Blair Waldorf." She said, holding Richie with her left arm and held out her right hand.

Chuck seemed to shake himself out of his stupor and stepped forward. "Yes, Mr. & Mrs. Schneiderman, this is my g-girlfriend," and they glanced at one another, "my girlfriend, Blair Waldorf."

The woman seemed to relax and smiled. Blair felt hot and cold. She was a girlfriend once more. It had been over a year since she'd been anyone's girlfriend. She had been waiting for Chuck to make her just that for so long that she had stopped hoping for it – and there it was when she wasn't looking. She had suddenly became his girlfriend.

"Oh, are you by any chance related to Eleanor Waldorf?" The woman asked Blair.

Blair smiled brightly because she was pretty sure the happy feeling taking over her body was going to be reflected out of her face for the next couple of hours.

"Yes, she's my mother –"

"Oh, I just love her designs!" the woman gushed. "David –" and she smacked her husband lightly making him jump. "Have you informed Mr. Bass about our AIDS brunch next week?"

The man looked downright confused and what Chuck would later call 'whipped'.

"I – Oh, you know –"

"You _must_ come!" The woman continued, her eyes still on Blair as if she had discovered a long lost family heirloom.

"I…" Blair was at loss for words and she glanced at Chuck who seemed elated. Schneiderman has refused to see him or answer his calls since the incident all those weeks ago. The hope that shone off his face was enough for her. She gulped and nodded. "Of course."

Mrs. Schneiderman was pleased. "David's secretary will send over the details. We must chat, you and I."

"Bah bye!" Richie said to Mrs. Schneiderman and the woman smiled, enchanted.

"We're babysitting." Chuck said. "For a… friend."

Mr. Schneiderman looked slightly impressed as he looked at the young child.

"Oh, he's a dear!" the woman stated, very impressed with the wide smile Richie was offering her.

"He's a handful, but Chuck has been wonderful." Blair emphasized, pointing towards Chuck with her chin.

"Ohh!" The woman cooed, sending her husband a look to be nice.

"Yes…" Mr. Schneiderman cleared his throat. "Come along, dear. Charles, a pleasure to see you. This time."

The woman ignored her husband's jibe despite of Chuck blanching. "We will see you next week, yes?"

"Of course, Mrs. Schneiderman." Chuck nodded towards her.

"Bah Bye!" Richie waved at them from Blair's arms as the elder couple walked away. Blair quickly turned to Chuck who looked right down relieved and she grabbed his jacket, yanking him down to her height and pressed her lips firmly against his, stunning him.

Soon, however, he relaxed and pulled her to him, squishing Richie between them as he embraced her and kissed her soundly as Manhattan continued walking by them. Richie whined a bit but finally settled his head on Blair's shoulder. Softly she pulled back, the happy butterflies that liked to flutter and bounce in her stomach sending chills down her bare arms. Chuck opened his eyes and stared at her.

"What the hell was that for?" He asked, a bit breathless himself. She smiled, molding herself against him.

"Can't I kiss my boyfriend just for the hell of it?" She asked, her cheeks flushed. It was his turn to blush because deep down he had almost wish she hadn't noticed but of course this was Blair Waldorf. If he didn't want a girl that notices these things, he needed to have chosen a different one to fall in love with.

He smiled slightly and she took it as an invitation to kiss him once more, burying her hand in the hairs at the nape of his neck.

"No, no!" Richie protested at being squished once more.

Chuck nearly laughed against her mouth, they pulled back, their noses bumping against one another softly.

"We're killing the kid." Chuck teased, yet continued to press his forehead against hers.

"Dada, no!" Richie pushed at Chuck's face making Chuck and Blair laugh.

"I think someone's jealous." Blair whispered, pulling back and kissing Richie's cheek who looked elated at no longer being cocooned between the two young lovers.

"Let's take you to the happiest place on earth, ok?" Chuck asked of the baby, lifting him up from Blair's arms.

"Disney?" Blair asked in a fake hopeful voice.

"Never." Chuck said.

"Not even when we have mini Chucks and Blairs?" Blair teased, pushing the stroller as he walked next to her.

"No." Chuck shook his head. "Disney does strange things to people. Makes them wear mouse ears, shorts with neon-glo shirts."

"I think you'd look quite charming with Mickey ears." Blair smirked.

--------

_Sunday, 11am_

"Mr. Chuck, please do let me know if there's anything you will need." The personal shopper Chuck had secured at Fao Schwarz smiled at them.

Blair set Richie down in a sea of giant stuffed animals. His eyes were wide as his little feet became unsure what he wanted to grab first. The giant panda, the long snake, the furry lion… too many choices for the one year old.

Richie looked up at Chuck and Blair, confused in his excitement. "Ma?"

"Get what you like." Blair ruffled his hair and the baby poked his finger to his lip, his little belly sticking out as he looked around in wonder.

"Go on." Chuck knelt next to him, pushing him a bit. When the baby didn't budge, Chuck picked up a stuffed orca whale by his foot that was nearly as large as the baby and placed it before Richie. The baby looked at the large toy and then suddenly his two little arms went for it and he hugged it tightly to his body as best he could.

"Boo boo!" he cried, happily. Blair smiled and went for a lovely pink flamingo, bringing it to the baby.

"No birds." Chuck stated.

"Technically, they're not birds." Blair countered. Richie went for a stuffed monkey.

"Say who?" he asked, nearly amused.

"Says I." she stated.

"Dada!" Richie yanked at Chuck's jacket showing him his newly discovered white monkey.

"Like this one? We'll take this one." Chuck stated, pointing to the white monkey in Richie's arms.

The man that hovered nearby. "I'll get a fresh one from the back." Chuck smiled, pleased.

"What else?" he asked the baby.

---------

"No." Chuck stated.

"But he wants one!" Blair protested as Richie rocked as best he could the baby doll in his arms.

"Those are girls toys." He said, shifting at the amount of pink in the area.

"So? He can have what he likes." Blair said, encouraging the baby.

Chuck grimaced when he tried to take the baby doll from Richie and the baby let out an angry scream.

Blair fixed him with a knowing look. "Lesson number one when it comes to relationships. The girlfriend is _always_ right."

Chuck scowled at her.

---------

_Sunday, 1pm_

Once all the toys were packed and on their way to be delivered to the Bass apartment, and Richie was content holding his blue ball which was his very favorite toy, they walked out and back into their waiting limo. Blair held his little hand as he walked next to them.

"How about lunch at _Il Pescatore_?" Chuck suggested, his hand placed firmly on her lower back. She smiled at him.

"Sounds divine." She nodded, getting in the limo.

Her phone went off and it was Serena. She picked it up as Chuck held Richie in his lap, showing him how to bounce the ball.

"Where did you all go?" Serena demanded. She sounded frazzled as if she had just woken up.

"We took the baby on a carriage ride through Central Park, then we took a stroll and we just left Fao Schwarz and now we're heading to Il –"

"B!" Serena cut her off. "The baby's father is here and I don't know a lot of Spanish but I think he's demanding to see his son –"

"What? He wasn't supposed to arrive until later!" Blair exclaimed, her eyes meeting Chuck's across the limo.

Unconsciously, Chuck tightened his hold on Richie.

"He does not seem happy, B." Serena continued. "He nearly punched Nate –"

"We'll be right there." Blair quickly closed her phone and stared at Chuck. "His dad is here."

Chuck nodded, his eyes dark. She moved over next to him, sliding close to him. Richie stopped playing with the ball and looked over at her from Chuck's arms.

"Mama?" Richie asked of her somber expression. That's when Blair started crying without precedent. She didn't know where it came from and truly did not want to dig in and find out why it came now but she let out a small whimper that she attempted to suppress to no avail.

Chuck was still for a moment, completely unsure of what he should do. Granted, he had seen Blair cry – he knew he had made her cry and had been there to witness the endless time either Serena or Nate had made her cry. But she'd never really cried over something like this. When her father had left her mother, she had refused to see him. Dorota had loomed over him like a guard dog and it was nearly two weeks later when she finally saw him. By then she was glossy and composed and he took it as a sign not to bring it up.

"Blair, please –" he said, unsure if his voice should be soft or reproachful.

She quickly dabbed at her eyes, attempting to compose herself and reached for the baby who was staring at her wide-eyed and confused. Chuck let her pull Richie on her lap and hold him close, as if it were the baby who was crying not her.

"There, there..." She whispered, kissing the top of his head. Richie curled into her, his ball rolling down her legs and to the middle of the limo floor. Chuck pulled her smaller frame to him, letting her head rest on his shoulder.

"Blair, we knew we had to give –"

"I know." She cut him off, holding what had become her baby closer.

A tight knot formed in Chuck's throat as he watched her shiver and despair at the thought of handing the baby back to his father. He ran his hand over her arm and tousled the baby's soft hair.

"He'll be fine. He doesn't need us." He reassured her but it was more a reassurance for himself. He had gotten kinda used to the kid hanging around. Blair staying over all the time, watching her change into her nightgown, feeling her warmth in the bed.

He liked it. Loved it. Looked forward to it. Now that the baby was leaving would she leave too? Would they go back to being awkward around one another because their new common interest would be gone.

Yeah. Chuck Bass wouldn't be fine at all if that were to happen. He would be downright fucked.

"We need a plan." He ventured to Blair's quiet form. He wondered if the baby had fallen asleep on her. He most likely had. That or she had suffocated him.

She shifted a little and turned to look at him, her eyes were slightly pink and she looked pale and upset. He reached out and cleaned a bit of the makeup that had ran from under her left eye with the pad of his finger.

"Like what?" she asked, her hand petting the child's hair. Richie looked like he was sleeping, sucking his thumb.

"Like we can't just hand him off, you know. After all, I think it's safe to say we've become a bit attached to the eating and pooping machine." He smirked and she returned it, remembering the same words she accused him of the day before.

"No… we can't just _pull_ back now that we're attached." She smiled, pressing her forehead to his. That soft current that just loved to reside in his stomach whenever she was around. Whenever her skin was in close contact.

"I say we evaluate the situation. Study our enemy and then make an executive yet education decision about our next step." He said slowly.

"Executive yet educational decisions are always very good." She nodded.

"I'll call my lawyer."

---------

Loads of flouncy, bouncy blonde hair. That was the very first thing they saw as the elevator doors opened and Serena rushed forward, entering the elevator with them.

"What took you two so long? I've been calling –"

"We've been ignoring –" Chuck informed her.

"He's not happy, Blair – he claims his son was stolen!" Serena exclaimed.

"_Now_ he speaks English?" Blair asked, attempting to push the stroller out of the elevator. Richie, who was clutching Chuck's scarf in his little first and sucking on his pacifier as he laid his head on Chuck's shoulder, peered over at Serena.

"It's been a sitcom in here. Juana speaks Portuguese so she spoke to him and then Liza spoke Portuguese and German and she spoke to Nate who then translated to me!" Serena rushed out.

"Nate's German is horrendous!" Blair stated flatly.

"Well, we had a dictionary!" Serena snapped.

"Where is he?" Chuck asked.

"Nate?"

Chuck raised a brow. "No. The angry father."

"Oh. Nate got him a drink!" Serena said flippantly.

"You left him with Nathaniel?" Chuck asked, hoisting the baby up as they exited the elevator.

"I did!" Serena huffed, helping Blair pull the heavy stroller into the house.

Blair looked at Chuck once they had set down all of their things and they nodded at one another.

"What is going on?" Serena demanded, noticing right away their odd silence and serene behavior.

"Nothing!" Blair countered. Serena's eyes narrowed as she followed them to the living room where she had left Nate to distract Richie's father.

Blair took a breath and took Richie from Chuck's arms. The baby whined a bit, still sleepy from his nap but quickly adjusted to Blair's arms, curling into her. Chuck guided her in, his hand placed on her lower back.

And there they were. Nathaniel Archibald too drunk for one o'clock on a Sunday. The father, however, was as sober as ever, sitting on the coach staring darkly ahead. He was in his thirties with a bit of salt and pepper hair and commonly dressed in jeans and a polo shirt. He had bags under his eyes and his entire demeanor shined of worry and exhaustion.

Chuck cleared his throat and the man instantly looked up at him, his brows furrowed. That's when Richie spotted him. From Blair's arms, he instantly dropped his pacifier and sat up.

"Daddy!" He cried when he saw the man.

_------_

To be concluded


	14. Chapter 14

**Title: ****Bringing Up Baby**

Author: Isabelle

Rating: PG

Disclaimer: I do not own Gossip Girl and Chuck Bass is not locked in my closet. But Blair might be ;)

Spoilers: Post 2.16. After avoiding one another, Chuck and Blair arrive at the Van der Bass home to find a small child left for the Bass family. This follows the first 48 hrs of C and B adjusting to having a small child to care for and realizing they're anything but over one another.

A/N –A special thank you to Tati, my always faithful beta *kiss*

---------

**Chapter 14**

_Sunday, 2pm_

Blair blanched as the baby wiggled out of her arms and onto the floor.

The man's face changed from worry and exhaustion to relief and pure, unadulterated love. Chuck gulped. The man jumped up and rushed forward, snatching the baby in his arms. He let out a cry of relief and joy, and Blair shifted, blinding reaching out for Chuck. He instantly wrapped his arm around her and pulled her to him.

Nate blinked at the reunion and smiled, slightly confused but very relaxed. Serena let out a little whimper as she tried not to cry. She was really rather emotional.

The man continued to thank God in Spanish as he held on to the baby, rocking him back and forth, pulling him back to look at him and embracing him once more. Richie's little arms were wrapped firmly around the man's neck as he repeated 'daddy' over and over.

Blair's hands felt empty. Like someone had snatched something precious from her. The plan had been simple. Watch the baby's reaction to his father. Watch the man's reaction to the baby. If they felt in any way that the child did not feel comfortable around the man who claimed to be his father, or the man seemed not relieved to see his son, they would see about getting temporary guardianship over the baby (at least get Lily temporary guardianship over the child). But the answer was clear as day, especially with the man's cries of joy.

Blair felt the room close in on her, tears prickling her eyes, so she quickly turned and ran to Chuck's room. Chuck tried to hold her back, but decided against it. He heard her sob up the stairs and motioned for Serena to go after her. His sister nodded and quickly went after Blair.

Chuck turned to the reunion before him, stuffing his hands in his pockets and rocking back on his heels.

Slowly the man lifted his small son and looked over at Chuck. His eyes were just as wide as Richie's, with the same open and honest look to them.

Chuck had never looked like his father. He had been a spitting image of his mother – everyone told him so. Since he had never looked like Bart, Chuck had decided at a very early age to _act_ like Bart. To show the world that he was his son. So he stood like his father, he stuffed his hands in his pockets, he carried his scotch like him, he glared like him, talked like him – he acted in every way like him. So that when people saw him, they would say, 'you're just like Bart' and that would be better. That would be much better.

The man said something in Spanish. Thankfully, Chuck had screwed enough culturally-diverse women to understand something.

"Chuck Bass." He extended his hand. The man studied him for a moment. Often times, he forgot that he was only a teen and others may not understand the power he wielded with his pocket book and his sharp mind.

"Pedro Escovar," the man replied in broken English. He lifted Richie in his arms, hefting him up, and Chuck noticed how well the little boy folded into his father's arms. He fit. The man went off in Spanish, and Chuck blinked, rapidly attempting to piece together what he was saying. Something about the mother stealing him, something about them being worried and something about a whale, but he was pretty sure something was lost in translation there.

Chuck looked around and tried to tell Pedro that the baby had gathered a lot of things during the few hours he had been with them. The man looked at him wide-eyed when he pointed to the high end high chair and the stroller.

"No, no –" Pedro said, eyes wide.

"Yes, please – what will we do with it?" Chuck reasoned, but he doubted the man understood him. He called for the maids and instructed them to gather every single thing that belonged to the baby. Pedro's eyes widened, and as the bags continued to come, he continued to protest.

"Mio!" The baby cried when he spotted one of his trains.

"No." Pedro shook his head even more when the bags from Fao Schwartz were delivered. In Pedro's defense, there were over twelve large bags brimming with toys.

"Did you buy the whole store?" Nate asked, slightly more sober and looking on at the bags that now littered the living room floor.

The baby spotted his favorite whale, and he wiggled out of his father's arms to go to it, pulling it out of the bag and showing it to his father with a wide smile.

Pedro looked on at Chuck and started saying something about this being too much and he should return all these items, but Chuck held up his hand and tried to tell him that it all belonged to the baby. Chuck pulled out his phone and called one of his many assistants and instructed them to get the Bass jet ready to take Pedro, Richie, and all of their bags back to Pittsburg.

This was, of course, hard to explain when Pedro started using the excuse that nothing would fit on the plane. How to explain to this man that he would have his own plane? It was a bit hopeless, so Chuck called Lisi from the lobby, whom he knew to be very fluent in both languages. Mostly from personal experience.

------

"B?" Serena asked softly as she entered her step-brother's room to find Blair huddled on the bed, staring out into space. She was crying silently, letting the tears dribble down her cheeks.

She didn't respond to Serena's inquiry, so Serena ventured into the room, closing the door gently behind her. She sat by Blair's head and softly pushed her hair back.

"Blair… He has a family…" Serena started slowly.

This made Blair sit up, her eyes fierce. "We _were_ a family!"

Serena was taken back by her outburst and blinked at her friend in confusion. "Blair," she tried to reason. "You and Chuck haven't even defined what you two are. How can you define what the three of you were?"

Blair's brows furrowed, and she decided to ignore that particular fact. "But we worked, S. We worked it out. Now what's going to happen when he doesn't want to eat the butternut squash baby food? Will they give him mashed potatoes instead? What's going to happen when he wants something, and they can't get it for him? What will happen then?" She ranted, without noticing that more tears dribbled down her cheeks.

Serena ran her hand over her bare arm. "B, he's been fine all this time without you and Chuck. He's a healthy and happy baby who doesn't belong to you."

Blair sniffed and looked away. "And what's going to happen now that he's leaving?"

"What do you mean?" Serena asked.

"With Chuck… We'll be back to being all uncertain and all confused… I mean…" Blair's thoughts died on her lips. "What brought us back together is now leaving… And we're surely going to mess it up. Like we've always messed it up."

Serena studied her, her head was tilted and she was chaewing on her bottom lip. "Look, I don't know for what insane purpose fate decided to drop a baby off in your doorstep on a lame Friday night where both you and Chuck just _happened_ to have nothing better to do than to end up here at the very exact time… But I do know that you have two choices. You can think it's just a coincidence and go on thinking that you will mess it all up because you both are such stubborn mules or… You can think that it was fate saying 'do it right this time'."

Blair's eyes widened at Serena's words, her head snapped up to stare at her.

"What?" Serena asked, confused, not used to getting this reaction to any advice she had ever given Blair in all of their years of being friends.

"What did you just say?" Blair demanded, her tears gone.

"Humm…" Serena looked thoroughly confused. "Stop being stubborn mules?"

"No, the last part. Say it again," Blair snapped.

Serena was at a loss. "Do it right this time?"

Blair sat back, her feet tucked under her as she stared at Serena in awe. "Do it right…" She smiled a little. "I always thought…"

Serena shook her head. "What?"

"All his words… I always assumed they meant what had already happened but… They were of things that had not yet happened." Blair smiled at Serena, wiping the last of her tears. "S. Do you believe in fate and destiny?"

Serena blinked, gaping at Blair's sudden shift of mood. "No… yes – no – well I think so. Why?"

"Because, do you remember when we were seven and Nate had to go visit his Aunt Libby in Connecticut?"

"No…"

"Well, he was, but this is the important part, listen. It was Chuck, Georgie, Eric, and Me. And remember how Georgie used to tease Eric a lot, and then I pretended to be his mommy with Nate as the daddy?"

"Blair…"

" – but since Nate wasn't there, I started to cry because there would be no daddy."

"No, I don't –"

"And Chuck said he would be the daddy if I stopped crying," Blair's eyes were wide and bright. "Do you remember, S?"

Serena shook her head, still confused. She could barely remember her 12th birthday, much less whatever happened when she was 7. Blair rolled her eyes and continued.

"Well, I think that's when it happened. This is when I jinxed myself because I agreed to let him be the daddy, and this is when it all changed. All this time fate has been _conspiring_ to bring Chuck and I back together," Blair continued.

"B. You need to stop this fantasy thing you always hold on to. You have to – life is not a fairytale," Serena pleaded with her, clearly worried.

"Why not?" Blair demanded, her brow now set.

Serena shrugged. "Because life is just not."

"I mean – why not? Who is to say a girl can't have it all? What sick, cynical person said we can't dream and in that dreaming hope that one day things will fall into place? Why? Who has the right to tell me to 'grow up'? I mean, I know not everything is perfect – most especially between me and Chuck. I know we keep messing up, I know we keep not getting it right and missing chances and making bad, awful decisions, but that doesn't change the fact that when two people love one another, you never EVER lose hope. Because… Love makes you hope, and in hoping, we dream. And in dreaming, we make. And I'm going to make it right because for the first time in my life, S, I have someone that loves me. That really, _really_ loves me. Who won't judge me and who will love me 'just as I am'." Her eyes were wide and honest.

Serena was gaping. "Bridget Jones."

"Ok, so sue me, I love movies. A girl can't help it," Blair admitted.

Serena smiled, touching Blair's face lovingly. "It's strange."

"What is?" Blair asked, getting off the bed.

"You and Chuck. Came out of nowhere and now… Well, let's just say I'm quite the fan."

The girls smiled at one another. "Look, B. I know you're sad about the baby leaving, but… Just think: one day you'll get to have your very own, and no one will ever take him away."

Blair smiled sadly. "I know... I think I'm going to enjoy being baby-free at least for a while. Enjoy just being with Chuck. Just us."

----------

_Sunday, 3pm_

Chuck sensed the moment Blair reentered the room. His neck swiveled to stare at her. Her face was clean of tears, her hair was curled and tucked behind her ear, and her eyes were wide and searching for his. He gave her a small smile of encouragement and she easily returned it, walking right to him as her hand slipped easily into his. It was a warm and comforting feeling. Finally, after so long of back and forth, they were in this together. A combined force, a unicellular organism worthy of admiration. Looking down at her, it occurred to him that he had _always_ wanted this. All along. He was still as scared as always to mess it all up because the thought of her hating him once more was a thought worse than death, but he had to chance it.

He didn't have a choice.

His grip tightened around her small, cold hand ,and he felt that if he held on tight enough he could pass his heat onto her. His fire. Love was fire.

She turned and stared at him, then quickly looked away. The only indication that she appreciated his gesture was the way she rubbed her thumb on the back of his pale hand. Her wide eyes studied the little baby on the floor of the living room as he showed his father all of the toys he had acquired. Pacifier in mouth, he dragged another stuffed animal and placed it by his father's feet, mumbling about it.

The father said more things in Spanish that Blair didn't understand, so she turned to Chuck, who seemed to be able to pick some things up.

"He says this is too much, and he doesn't want to take all the things," Chuck murmured. "I called Lisi up, so she could translate to him."

Blair turned to the child, and Richie spotted her. His little feet quickly went to her, showing her his ball that he could hardly carry between his small hands.

"Mama," he murmured, and Blair felt a tightening in her throat as she let go of Chuck's hand and bent down to face the baby eye-level. Richie stared at her with wide eyes, unaware that in a few moments they would be saying goodbye.

"Hey… You need to be good now. Ok? Don't let them feed you the butternut squash, ok?" Blair said low and gently, and Richie smiled at her, handing her his ball.

Blair laughed and shook her head. "No. Why don't you keep it?"

Richie let the ball bounce down on the floor and quickly hugged her, burying his face in her neck. She pulled him to her and held him tight, petting his hair and looking over him to his father, who was staring at her curiously. She inhaled the baby's natural scent once more and gently let go of him, attempting a smile even though her heart wanted to scream.

She raised her hand before his face and waved it slightly. "Bah bye."

Richie's face lit up, recognizing the words. "Bah bye!" He cried, waving his little hand enthusiastically. Blair smiled, holding her tears back.

Chuck knelt by Blair, and Richie looked him over, still waiving his hand. "Bah bye, he told Chuck, and Chuck smirked slightly, tousling the baby's hair.

"You take care of your dad, alright? Try not to pee on his bed," Chuck mentioned and, behind them, Serena settled next to Nate, teary-eyed herself. Richie pulled out his pacifier and leaned forward, giving Chuck a watery kiss on his cheek that made Chuck chuckle. The baby, quickly losing interest, turned to his father and asked to be picked up. The father held the child tight to his chest, still looking over Chuck and Blair in a confused manner.

-------

_Sunday, 4pm_

The man was given an explanation of what would happen and, though he protested, he finally gave in when Richie started screaming about his toys being taken away. The man shook his head and finally agreed to be flown in on the Bass jet with all of the Bass gifts. Once the limo was ready and all of the items were loaded to it, Pedro walked towards the elevator with his son in his arms and made him way to the waiting jet. He paused and reached out to shake Chuck's hand.

"Thank you," he said, nodding.

Chuck gulped and shook his hand.

Richie, still suckling on his ever faithful pacifier, waved to them as they walked to the elevator, looking at them with wide eyes over his father's shoulder.

"Bah bye!" He cried to them once more.

Blair didn't even bother holding back her tears then; she let them slide down her face because, as scared as she had been before of even touching the baby, she had to admit that he and his wide, loving eyes had won her over. She would miss his little body in the bed curled next to them; she would miss Chuck's face whenever baby food got on his Italian loafers; she would miss the tantrums and the toys everywhere.

"Bah bye!" The little voice echoed as the elevator doors closed.

Blair felt Chuck's arms wrap around her waist and pull her to him, his hands searching for hers. She leaned her head back on his shoulder, letting him comfort her.

"You ok?" He murmured, and she nodded.

"That's the problem with emotional detachment," she said.

He turned his head and gave her a sideways glance. A look of inquiry.

"You always get attached to the ones you never set out to care about," she smiled a bit. "Kinda like us."

"What do you mean?" He asked, still confused.

"Didn't really want you in the beginning, but now… I kinda love you." She smiled, and he chuckled against her cheek.

"C'mon… Let's gross Serena out," he whispered conspiratorially as he pulled her to his room.

"YES, GET A ROOM!" His step sister cried from her spot on the couch where she and Nate were ordering Chinese.

Chuck shut the door behind them, and she was instantly in his arms. She didn't know if it was the sudden need for affection caused by the baby being taken away, or the fact that everything was still new and sweet after being separated for so that made them this horny, but that was what they were. Two horny teens.

"I love you," she murmured, and those words once more made his heart flutter as he devoured her mouth, drinking as much of her as he could. So that they might become one.

He repeated the words back to her, in a hushed, urgent tone – so that the words would always belong to her and only her.

-----

_Sunday, 7pm_

They lay tangled in his sheets, their legs slightly touching as they lay on their stomachs and stared at one another, the pillows under their cheeks. He reached out and tucked a strand of hair behind her ear, making her sigh contently.

"I miss the little mess," he confessed. She smiled slightly, leaning into his touch.

"Me too," she murmured.

"It's been 48 hours…" He said quietly.

"I'm still here," she said and, in the darkness, he could see her smile.

They remained quiet, feeling each other's heat, and didn't leave the room until their stomachs begged them for food. When they walked out, they found Nate and Serena once more asleep on the couch together.

"Does he ever go home?" Blair asked, smirking at Chuck.

"ANYTHING is better than Brooklyn hanging about," Chuck replied. Blair agreed with a glance from her eyes.

-----

Once Lily had arrived and Serena had re-told the story in her own words as Blair added a thing or two here and there, she decided she needed to go back home. It was nearing nine and she needed to get ready for school.

"Stay. I'll have more clothes brought over." Chuck Bass was not pleading, but the thought of spending a night away from her alone in his bed, regardless of seeing her in the morning, made him a bit nervous. Just a bit. Not completely. Not entirely.

She gave him a slight smirk, glancing his way.

"I'll see you at school. This time you can talk to me." She walked to where he sat in bed, looking rather dejected. Almost adorable. Just a bit. Not completely. Not entirely.

She straddled him, and his hands instantly landed on her ass, on which he seemed to be quite fixated. And to think she had thought it too large once upon a time. Chuck Bass apparently didn't share her sentiment.

His hands slid up her back, through her hair and landed a caress on the nape of her neck as he pulled her to her. This is how their day had been spent. Their foreheads met as brown eyes locked on to one another.

"You're sad," she concluded after studying his gaze. He blinked, unsure if he could deny it because that would be lying. She had touched him more than any other human being. Hence, she might be able to see things others had always simply glanced at.

"Me, too," She confessed, and this brought a slight comfort to his stomach. His jaw twitched, and she traced the sharp angles of his face with her slim finger.

"Don't go," he said again, and he said it so very low that for a moment she thought she had imagined it.

But she hadn't, and she could tell the way his eyes – for a moment – pleaded with her.

_Don't go. Everyone leaves._

She pulled back to study his face, touching his cheeks with the pads of her fingers. "I'm not going anywhere, Bass. I'll see you in a few."

His eyes shifted, almost as if he realized himself that he was being extremely needy and vulnerable. His grip tightened on her waist.

"What are you doing tomorrow?" He changed gears.

"I have to study for my anatomy final," she answered, as if she had it planned for a long time.

"I'll help you," he concluded, and she smiled into his mouth as she kissed him.

"Such a supportive boyfriend," she murmured as he kissed her again. She did eventually have to leave before Dorota marched to the apartment and yelled at Chuck in Polish. She grabbed her phone from his bed and put it in her purse, and that was when she spotted it.

There, in between her make-up bag and her new Dior wallet, was a small, white cloth. She set her purse down and reached in to pull the small item out. Her eyes lit up when she saw what it was. It was a tiny sock she had removed from Richie at one point during his stay. Since the maids had efficiently removed all items pertaining to the child before he had even left, she had nothing left of the baby. Yet, here it was, in the palm of her hand – a little sock he had worn. Without thinking, she placed it on her nose and inhaled. She let out a squeal of delight which startled Chuck, who was organizing his watches.

"What?" He asked, coming to her. She bounced on her bare feet and showed him.

"A sock! He left a sock!" She cried triumphantly.

Chuck looked on as she smelled the sock as if it were drenched in Chanel n.5.

"Oh, Chuck – it smells like him!" Blair cried, the melancholy they had managed to fuck out of one another coming back in waves. Chuck grabbed the small sock that fit in the palm of his hand and stared at it.

"So little…" He murmured.

"Smell it!" Blair demanded. And Chuck finally gave in, bringing the small little thing to his nose. She was right. His Blair was right. The cotton sock held the scent of the baby they had cared for as if it were their own. His closed his eyes slightly, remembering their initial reaction to the baby – their inability to change diapers, the first time they got him to sleep, the first time they fed him, his playing with his trains – he remembered it all.

He didn't realize how long he had been standing there, commiserating over the past few hours, until Blair leaned into him, wrapping her arms around his waist and rested her head on his chest.

He shook off his memories.

"We didn't even take a picture," she whispered. "This is not meant to encourage you to hire a P.I. and track the baby down."

He smiled sardonically, at her. "You know me too well, I'd say."

"And don't you forget it," she answered gaily.

---------

The end.

AN – I will post an epilogue either today or tomorrow :) A special thanks to everyone who reviewed the fiction AND to Tati and Carter for their BETA of this fiction. Many of you are asking what I'm doing next and the answer is nothing for right now. Thank you once more for all the positive feedback!


	15. Chapter 15

**Title: ****Bringing Up Baby**

Author: Isabelle

Rating: PG

Disclaimer: I do not own Gossip Girl and Chuck Bass is not locked in my closet. But Blair might be ;)

Spoilers: Post 2.16. After avoiding one another, Chuck and Blair arrive at the Van der Bass home to find a small child left for the Bass family. This follows the first 48 hrs of C and B adjusting to having a small child to care for and realizing they're anything but over one another.

A/N –A special thank you to Tati, my always faithful beta *kiss*

---------

**Epilogue**

_Nine Years later_

Her feet hurt and she was exhausted. The moment she shut the door to the brownhouse behind her, she heard the maid scurry forward and quickly take her heavy coat and scarf.

"Where are they?" She asked the maid.

"In the study, ma'am," the woman said, nodding as Blair handed over her purse.

Blair nodded and quickly made it up the hardwood stairs, pausing and frowning as she noticed one of the paintings _slightly_ askew. She fixed it.

She heard murmuring coming from the study as she inched towards it, her feet silent on the luxury carpet she had installed upstairs.

He was sitting in the rocking chair he had one of the maids drag into his study, working on a spreadsheet at his large widescreen monitor. Papers were strewn all over his desk, his blackberry kept vibrating with incoming emails, and small pale arms were wrapped around his neck.

Blair smiled, walking to them. He sensed her behind him and turned to stare at her. She smiled, taking in the sleeping form for their four year-old daughter draped over him as he tried to work around her small body.

"You're home." He sounded relived. She bent down and kissed him slightly, smiling into his lips.

"You taste like chocolate," he commented.

"We had cake," she explained and turned to their daughter, who looked slightly pale.

"Her fever went down," he said. "I told you I could handle it."

She smirked, and he carefully handed her over. Blair cuddled the little girl in her arms, making her stir.

"Mommy?" The little girl asked, and Blair pressed her lips to her forehead.

"I'm here, baby." Blair held her closer.

"Daddy let me have ice cream for dinner," she informed Blair, and this made Blair turn to look at a slightly guilty-looking Chuck. _Slightly_.

"She was sick," he said as an explanation.

"Let's get you to bed," Blair said.

"Can I sleep with you and Daddy tonight?" The little girl asked, her brown eyes wide and pleading.

Blair glanced at Chuck, who looked just as needy.

"For a little while, and then Daddy will take you to your bed," Blair said, and her daughter nodded rather sadly, resting her small head on Blair's shoulder.

"Let me finish up and I'll be right there," Chuck murmured, watching her walk away towards their bedroom.

Sure enough, by the time Blair had slipped into her gown, Reggie was pretty much out. Regina Alexandra Bass-Waldorf was curled on her father's thick pillow, her pink princess nightgown only letting her small feet peek out from under it. Her wide brown eyes were staring at her mother as she walked back to the bed.

"This is _way_ past your bedtime," Blair said quietly as she slipped under the covers, pulling them over her baby's form. Reggie instantly slid over to Blair, curling into her, resting her head on her mother's comforting chest. Blair kissed the top of her brown head and wrapped her arms around her.

She woke again when she felt Chuck slip into the bed, watching her with dark eyes. Their daughter was still asleep against her.

"Got a new picture of Richie today," he murmured to her. Blair pretended that she didn't like that, every once in a while, he would get info from his 'people' as she liked to call it. The truth was that her heart soared at hearing little bits of news about their 'first' baby.

"He starts middle school next year," he commented, and Blair blanched.

"He doesn't!" She snapped.

He chuckled, pulling the sheet around him and turning off the light on his side of the bed, leaving them in darkness.

"He's just a baby!" Blair continued with her hissing protest.

"He's going to be eleven next year, my dear wife," he corrected her, and draped his arm around his girls, pulling them to him.

She scowled at him, then stopped when he kissed the top of Regina's head and the little girl murmured in her sleep contently. There was no doubt that Regina was her father's very favorite possession. Because in Chuck's mind Reggie was _his_ in the most possessive sense of the word. And in return, Regina showered her father with affection – from her very early months. She _loved_ her mother, but she was fixated on her father. Since she had been only weeks old, she would follow him with her wide eyes, watching what he did, who he talked to. When he didn't pay attention to her – which was a rare occasion – she would throw a proper Waldorf tantrum and demand it.

"Do you ever wonder what would've happened if we had kept the baby?" Blair asked quietly as they settled in their large bed, their daughter nestled between them.

"Sometimes," he confessed, and she knew he meant that in the beginning he thought about it _all_ the time. For a good few months after the baby was gone, they were nearly grieving the loss of him. During the summer after high school, they healed their relationship and healed each other. Despite Blair's feigning protest, Chuck would receive news and updates on Richie and his life. They locked it up in a box along with what was left of his sock and a toy train Nate had discovered months later under the couch.

But the months had turned into years and here they were, adults in their own right, running two corporations and raising a daughter of their own. Yet, moments like this when they received a little bit of news from that child that inevitably brought them together, they could reminiscence on what the trial run had felt like.

"Remember when you wanted to buy him that horse in central park?" Blair asked, chuckling at the memory of their teen selves. "I should've known that would come back to haunt us." She was referring, of course, to the stables they owned in which both of Reggie's horses were housed.

Chuck smirked, his very famous devilish smile teasing his lips, completely unashamed of the thousands he had spent buying his daughter the horse of her choice.

"_Like a Barbie horse, daddy!" Regina cried when the Palomino was presented to her._

"It could've been worse," Chuck defended.

"I'm sure as she grows older and she finds other things she wants, it'll most certainly get worse," Blair remarked, though she never objected to his spending the money – most especially when he worked so hard to get it.

"And she'll get it," Chuck admitted, earning him a glare from his wife. "Love you too, Mrs. Bass."

He had no shame. None whatsoever! She fumed.

She was quiet for a while.

"Show me the picture tomorrow," she finally gave in, and he smirked from his side of the bed. "You're such a bastard sometimes, you know."

His smirk widened. Name calling always equaled love.

"Shhh," Regina demanded from her spot, haughty as only their daughter could be.

----------

The end.


End file.
